Ex-Bandmate Accuses Black Flag Guitarist Greg Ginn of Child Abuse, Drug Use

In the wake of allegations made by Marina Ginn that her ex-husband -- Black Flag co-founder and guitarist Greg Ginn -- is abusive to their two young daughters, Ginn's former bandmate, Ron Reyes, told investigators her claims are true.

In an affidavit given by Reyes -- who was the singer for Black Flag from 1978 to 1979 and again for a reunion show in the '80s -- he said Ginn smokes marijuana in front of his daughters (ages 7 and 10), often leaves them unsupervised and denies them food. Reyes also said Ginn's home in Taylor, Texas, is filthy and filled with foster cats that Ginn doesn't take care of, according to Consequence of Sound.

Reyes said he recently reconnected with Ginn and had started traveling to his home studio in January 2013 in an attempt to record a new Black Flag album. He alleges that Ginn would bring his daughters with him on days their nanny was off, and because he wouldn't allow the girls into the studio or office, he would make them wait in a hallway all day. "The hallway has a concrete floor but no chairs or anything to sit on, so the kids would just sit on the concrete and wait for Greg," Reyes said in the affidavit. "They had a laptop that I saw them playing with from time to time, but for the most part they just stayed in the hallway from the time they showed up (around 8AM) until the time Greg left, which was always very late."

Reyes said Ginn would also refuse them food. "A few times a day, they would knock on the door or open the door and tell Greg they were hungry. He would quickly go over and usher them away from the door and close it, but usually he would make them wait, hours usually, before he would break for food and, I assume, feed them," he said. "They would just have to wait until we took a break in rehearsal to get food or have any interaction with other people."

Reyes also claims that Ginn is "severely" dependent on drugs and "would smoke marijuana constantly" in addition to drinking a bottle of wine or two each day. After Reyes allegedly confronted Ginn about the abuse, their relationship "continued to deteriorate to the point where we could no longer work together." He quit the band while on tour that November although his replacement, Mike Vallely, told Rolling Stone that Reyes was fired for being "disgruntled" and "combative."

Reyes subsequently released a statement to Brooklyn Vegan confirming the claims made in his affidavit:

When you hear things that trouble your heart, especially the heart of a parent… well lets just say that it is hard to stay silent and wash your hands and somehow walk away hoping to remain safe and unaffected. I am very troubled by what I have heard over the last couple months. And all I can hope for is that somehow things will work out in favour of two very precious children so they can live a life that is safe and full of love, support and guidance they deserve. Whenever a woman speaks out about abuse people want to second guess her and cast shame and doubt over her claims. This infuriates me to no end as I have two daughters and a wife of 27 years that I love to death. It is just not right to immediately doubt and somehow pour shame onto a woman for speaking out based on gender. I have no love of lawyers and do not look forward to the backlash I will receive for lending a voice of support to those who have reached out to me. But called i have been and I just can’t ignore that. People please consider the source of all accusations carefully and pray for an outcome of peace and love and safety for children who cannot speak for themselves in court.

In the meantime, Marina Ginn told Consequence of Sound that when she split from her ex-husband in 2006, he did nothing to care for her or their children. "He left me destitute, battered and without child support," she said. "The situation was dire enough that I was homeless for a short while. In a desperate, failed attempt to protect my children and I from abuse and get myself out of a really bad situation, I resorted to adult entertainment. My ex-husband gained knowledge of it and has used that information to blackmail and exploit me further. I expect, given the kind of person I know he is (and everybody who has ever done business with him knows he is) that he will try to smear me with this information again, so I thought it best to just be up front about what I have been through trying to protect myself and my children from this man.”

Greg Ginn’s attorney has yet to respond to requests for comment.