Sexual abuse lawsuit dismissed against former CrossRoads CEO

The 2021 lawsuit that accused prominent Las Vegas substance abuse counselor Dave Marlon of sexual abuse and harassment has been dismissed.

Marlon and “Gahyne Doahe,” the woman who filed the lawsuit under a pseudonym, have negotiated a confidential settlement, according to court documents filed earlier this month. District Court Judge Joanna Kishner ordered to dismiss the case last week.

As part of the agreement, the woman acknowledged that Marlon denied many of the allegations in her lawsuit and she agreed to retract the claims that pertained to his liability. She also agreed to withdraw the claims she filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, according to the document provided to the Review-Journal.

“We are pleased the matter is resolved,” the woman’s attorney, Jenny Foley, wrote in a statement, stating the documents “speak for themselves.”

Marlon, who co-founded the nonprofit Vegas Stronger, has now been reinstated as its president.

He resigned from that position after the lawsuit was filed and was only involved in the organization in a clinical capacity up to now, he said.

After the allegations, Marlon also resigned from the boards of six other organizations and stepped down from his position as CEO of CrossRoads of Southern Nevada, a local drug and alcohol treatment center that has contracts with Clark County to help the homeless.

“This distraction didn’t just hurt me, it hurt the people I was trying to help, it hurt the whole city and state, so I’m just grateful to be able to get back to work,” Marlon said.

Marlon’s accuser, who began working as his assistant in April 2021, filed a 40-page complaint against him in November, alleging that he had sexually abused, harassed and threatened her for months while they worked together.

No criminal charges, in this case, have been filed against Marlon, court records show.

Marlon repeatedly denied the allegations and had filed a sealed complaint against his accuser before the one against him was filed.

The amended complaint in Marlon’s lawsuit against the woman states that it was she who first asked Marlon to engage in BDSM, or bondage, dominance, sadism and masochism.

The two engaged in a consensual BDSM role play on four occasions before the woman began a scheme to extort money from him, said Marlon’s complaint, which was dismissed this month.

In a November interview, Marlon had denied having any sort of sexual relationship with the woman. He reiterated that point Monday.

“The few requested and consensual role plays that occurred with Gayne Dough (sic) was not a sexual relationship,” Marlon told the Review-Journal in an email. “There are some important distinctions between a sexual relationship and BDSM encounters.”

In addition to Marlon, the woman’s lawsuit named CrossRoads Chief Operation Officer and Vegas Stronger board member John Seeland and Marlon’s other businesses: the nonprofit Vegas Stronger, the Marlon Professional Corporation and Moorea Holdings LLC. The company Big E was also a defendant.

Marlon said he is looking forward to moving forward with his efforts to help the homeless and addicted. After struggling with substance abuse, Marlon has managed treatment centers and counseled patients in Las Vegas for the past 15 years.

“I’m as focused as ever on helping address the crisis of substance use and the crisis of homelessness that’s affecting our community,” he said.

Marlon has been in Las Vegas for more than 30 years.

He is also the president of the Southern Nevada Association of Addiction Professionals and has served on the governor’s Substance Abuse Working Group.

Marlon, who ran for Las Vegas City Council in 2019, previously was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence but was not convicted.

Contact Briana Erickson at berickson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5244. Follow @ByBrianaE on Twitter.