Winery owner accused of rape and sexual abuse by younger sister: lawsuit

Hilary McKean claims her brother Mark Hanson subjected her to “repeated violent sexual abuse and rape” over six years when they were minors, the lawsuit says

Content warning: The following article contains disturbing allegations of sexual assault.

The California winery owner is accused in a lawsuit of raping and sexually abusing his younger sister when they were growing up together.

A lawsuit against Mark Hanson, a copy of which was obtained by PEOPLE, was filed by his sister Hilary McKean in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco.

McKean has publicly identified himself in the San Francisco Chroniclein which it is reported that the parties are half-siblings with the same mother.

Hanson, 63, is co-founder and CEO of Bricoleur Vineyards in Sonoma County.

McKean, 60, accuses her brother of “repeated brutal sexual abuse and rape” over a period of “at least six years,” the indictment states.

The lawsuit alleges that the abuse began when McKean was 8 and continued until she was 14, after the family moved to a new home. Her bedroom and that of her brother were down a hallway from that of her parents and younger sister, and McKean claims Hanson took advantage of this and “fervently abused” her, subjecting her to unwanted sexual intercourse, oral sex, forced masturbation, choking and strangulation, and making her “suck her toes against her will.”

Hanson denied the allegations to the outlet through his attorney.

“Hilary has fabricated and fabricated details with the sole intention of portraying me in the most damaging light possible and extorting a lot of money from me,” Hanson said in a statement. “While my daughter is focused on beating cancer, I am also busy running our shared family business in her absence. This speaks directly to my sister’s lack of character, compassion and greed.”

McKean says she still suffers from the effects of the incidents, including “repeated tissue, muscle and organ damage” and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), severe anxiety, depression and “a loss of earning capacity.”

According to the lawsuit, McKean is seeking unspecified damages and a jury trial.

The lawsuit states that McKean remembered her brother’s alleged actions in the spring of 2022 after previously “burying and repressing” her memories.

According to the timelineMcKean was writing her memoirs at the time. “It was like a door opened and they poured out of a closet they’d been locked in,” she told the outlet.

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“I think there’s a lot of pressure to protect the family’s reputation and not talk about these things,” she continued. “I don’t think it’s healthy for anyone to hold onto these secrets. It’s not healthy for me and it’s not healthy for our society. We need to be able to talk about what happened to us.”

Hanson was originally listed as “John Doe” in the lawsuit filed in March. On April 26, a judge ruled that Hanson could be publicly named as a defendant, according to the timeline.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to Rainn.org.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.

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