Kevin Spacey, the Oscar-winning actor who was accused of assaulting four men in London, was found not guilty by a jury on Wednesday.
After nearly four weeks, the jury began their deliberations on Monday. After three days, the jury delivered its verdicts at Southwark Crown Court. Spacey cried as he talked to the media outside the Southwark Crown Court after the verdicts had been announced.
Spacey told the Daily Mail: “I’m sure many of you understand that I have a lot to process following what just happened.” “But I want to express my gratitude to the jury, for taking the time to carefully examine the evidence and facts before reaching their decision.”
“I am humbled by the outcome today,” he added. “I also want to thank the staff inside this courthouse, the security, Evan Lowenstein, and all those who took care of us every single day, my legal team…for being here every day.”
Spacey, who turned 64 years old on Wednesday, has pleaded not guilty to the charges of sexual assault, sexual indecency, and inducing a person into penetrative sexual behavior without consent. Four men gave testimony about similar encounters in which Spacey was accused of groping them.
Between 2001 and 2013, the acts accused ranged from unwanted touch to aggressive crotch-grabbing, and in one case, oral sex performed on an unconscious male.
In closing arguments, the prosecution argued that Spacey was able to get away with his actions because of his celebrity status.
Spacey, according to Christine Agnew, seized moments of “opportunity” and got away with assaults for many years because he was a celebrity.
Agnew stressed that the accounts of the four men were similar, not because they conspired to bring Spacey to justice, but because, according to the prosecution, groping is Spacey’s “trademark move.”
Spacey’s lawyer stated during Friday’s closing arguments that three men were liars and suggested jurors do not convict Spacey for making a clumsy gesture at a fourth man.
Spacey gave two days of testimony, in which he denied groping violently one of his accusers. Instead, he painted a picture for the jury of their “intimate”, “somewhat sexual”, relationship. He said, “I never imagined that the man I knew 20 years later would stab me in my back.”
Spacey’s description of gentle stroking was in direct contradiction to what the alleged victims testified. They said he caught them by surprise when he aggressively grabbed their privates through their clothing.
Elton John testified remotely for Spacey at one stage of the trial. He confirmed that the “American Beauty star had only attended one annual gala party in 2001.” Spacey’s alleged victim claimed that the actor assaulted the man while they were driving to John’s White Tie & Tiara ball in 2004 or 2005.
Spacey was first accused of sexual misconduct in 2017 when Anthony Rapp, an actor, came forward. Rapp claimed that Spacey assaulted him in the 1980s at a party. Spacey was not found liable in Rapp’s civil lawsuit.
After Rapp’s claim, more men made accusations against Spacey and he was kicked off the Netflix series “House of Cards.”
Spacey has recently returned to the big screen, with roles in “The Man Who Drew God” by Italian director Franco Nero, the biopic “Once Upon a Time In Croatia”, and the film “Peter Five Eight”.
