Jury Dismisses Kevin Spacey Sexual Assault Lawsuit

Actor Kevin spacey wins trial against Anthony Rapp: The 'House of Card' star still faces other charges in the UK! 

Significant relief for Oscar winner Kevin Spacey, who was accused of sexual assault, battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress by actor Anthony Rapp, best known for his role in Star Trek: Discovery. Anthony, 50, alleged that he was 14 when the House of Cards actor, aged 26, tried to make sexual advances. Rapp filed a lawsuit in September 2020, seeking around $40 million in damages.  

On Thursday, a New York jury cleared Spacey, 63, of all the charges but the battery claim. The verdict comes after a three-week of civil trials in Manhattan federal court, and as per sources, the Thursday deliberation lasted for more than an hour. Judge Lewis Kaplan dismissed the sexual assault claim before the trial, and after Rapp's lawyers rested their case, the judge dismissed the actor's emotional distress accusation as well.   

"We are very grateful to the jury for seeing through these false allegations," Kevin's attorney Jennifer Keller said in a statement. While Spacey didn't say anything on his part, the actor reportedly hugged his lawyers in joy. Rapp, who alleged that the incident took place in 1986, came forward with the accusations in 2017, although the actor had shared the story in 2001 but had kept Spacey's name anonymous.  

Rapp alleged that the two-time Oscar winner, appearing intoxicated, claimed on top of him and rubbed his groin against Rapp's hip. "He was trying to seduce me," actor Rapp said. He added, "I don't know if I would have used that language. But I was aware that he was trying to get with me sexually. The older I get, the more I can't believe it. I could never imagine [that] anyone I know would do something like that to a 14-year-old boy."  

Kevin faces another sexual assault trial in the UK!  

Claiming his innocence, Kevin said he was shocked when Rapp made the accusations. "I didn't know how this could possibly be true," said the 63-year-old actor. When Rapp went public with the allegations, Spacey made a public apology to the actor. The actor cited that he can't recall any such incident but is deeply sorry if it indeed occurred, as asserted. 

The actor's muddled apology was also assisted by Spacey coming out of the closet. "I know that there are other stories out there about me and that some have been fueled by the fact that I have been so protective of my privacy," Kevin explained while adding, "I now choose to live as a gay man."   

After clearing the cloud on his long-confused sexual orientation and the surfaced allegations, Spacey encountered a major block in his blossoming career. The Oscar winner was dropped from the successful Netflix show House of Cards and was also ordered to pay the show's producer $31 million for the loss they bore because of the fiasco.  

The American Beauty actor also faces five sexual assault charges in the UK. Earlier this year, in June, Spacey was charged with four counts of sexual assault and one charge of "causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent." The three victims, all men, now aged between their 30s to 40s, alleged that the Recount actor assaulted them between 2005 to 2013 in London. Kevin's stance on the allegations is "not guilty." The actor is scheduled to start the trial next year in June.  

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