After numerous accusations against the actor in the United States during the #MeToo movement, Kevin Spacey is again expected Thursday in London for a preparatory hearing before the British courts, facing charges of sexual assault on three men he dispute. Released after a first hearing almost a month ago, the star actor of the series “House of Cards” is prosecuted for four sexual assaults on three men between March 2005 and April 2013.
The actor wants to “prove his innocence”
The 62-year-old comedian, expected at the Old Bailey court, is also accused of forcing one of them to engage in penetrative sexual activity without his consent, a charge that differs from rape (which involves penetration with a penis) in English law.
Some facts were allegedly committed in the Lambeth district of London, where the Old Vic theater is located, of which he was artistic director between 2004 and 2015. After the green light from the prosecution, the actor said he was “disappointed” but had announced his intention to appear in front of the British justice to “prove his innocence”. At the end of this morning in court, Kevin Spacey pleads not guilty.
“Mr. Spacey vigorously denies any criminal act in this case,” his lawyer, Patrick Gibbs, said on June 16, “he must answer these charges to move on with his life.”
Already accused of sexual assault in 2016
In the United States, Kevin Spacey had been charged with indecent assault and sexual assault in the state of Massachusetts, on the East Coast. He was accused of having, in July 2016, got his hands on the sex of an 18-year-old young man employed in a bar, after having made him drink. But the charges were dropped in July 2019.
In late May, he appeared before a New York judge for a procedural hearing in a civil suit brought by actor Anthony Rapp, who accused him of making sexual advances to her when he was teenager. Kevin Spacey had denied and the action was dropped in criminal proceedings.