April 28 [16:00 EST] -- On Monday, Marilyn Manson's epic crusade against its detractors reached a new impasse as its First Amendment attorney filed a lawsuit against the New Jersey Sports and Exhibition Authority, which refused to sell tickets to its June 15 Ozzfest '97 Meadowlands show if Manson remained on the bill.

Paul Cambria, the band's attorney, says the plaintiffs (which include Manson, promoters Delsner-Slater and Artie Festival Incorporated) allege that the New Jersey Meadowlands is violating Manson's First Amendment rights.

The lawyer anticipates Ozzy Osbourne will join forces with the plaintiffs within a few days. On Friday, Cambria sent a four-page legal letter to Dr. Donald E. Wildmon (who heads up the conservative group, the American Family Association) and David Rogers (president of the Gulf Coast chapter of the American Family Association) demanding they cease and desist from publishing defamatory information about Marilyn Manson and its members through

its Internet website, A.F.A. journal and automated answering machine.

The letter says the organization is disseminating false and libelous statements throughout the states and foreign countries. Particularly grievous to Cambria and his client are Internet postings of several so-called affidavits from teenagers who never give their names and claim to have attended Manson concerts on January 17, 1997 and January 24, 1997.

One teen affiant says Marilyn Manson encouraged the crowd to have sex on the floor of a venue in Dallas, Texas and discussed raping young girls and boys during a performance. Another teen says Manson throws kittens and puppies off the stage and will not start a concert until fans kill the animals.

The affiant goes on to claim that Manson has performed oral sex with a 10-year-old during a concert, that the band puts caged teens into the crowd and encourages the crowd to push all children forward towards the stage so they can be used as virgin sacrifices

to Satan. Noting that these affidavits are rife with malicious lies and has harmed the band's reputation, Cambria's letter directs the American Family Association to immediately cease and desist from publishing these falsehoods, retract these statements, apologize, and disclose the identities of the alleged affiants. Cambria's says the band will seek all available legal remedies, as well as compensatory and punitive damages.