This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2019/jan/07/kevin-spacey-indecent-assault-charge-nantucket-court

The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Kevin Spacey attends court in Nantucket on indecent assault charge Kevin Spacey attends court in Nantucket on indecent assault charge
(about 2 hours later)
At a minutes-long arraignment on the ritzy Massachusetts island of Nantucket on Monday, Kevin Spacey did not appear to utter a word as he appeared before a judge alongside his lawyers. At a minutes-long arraignment on the ritzy Massachusetts island of Nantucket on Monday, Kevin Spacey did not appear to utter a word.
Kevin Spacey case brings attention to Nantucket – where many go to avoid spotlightKevin Spacey case brings attention to Nantucket – where many go to avoid spotlight
The 59-year-old Oscar-winning actor is accused of groping a then 18-year-old man at the Club Car restaurant and bar on the island, in 2016. The 59-year-old Oscar-winning actor appeared before a judge, alongside his lawyers, accused of groping a then 18-year-old man at the Club Car restaurant and bar on the island in 2016.
The charge, of indecent assault and battery, is a felony. If convicted, Spacey would face a maximum of five years in prison. He would also have to register as a sex offender. The charge, of indecent assault and battery, is a felony. If convicted, Spacey will face a maximum of five years in prison and registration as a sex offender.
His lawyers entered a not guilty plea on his behalf and a pre-trial hearing was set for 4 March. Judge Thomas S Barrett said Spacey would not have to appear at that hearing, but that he must be available by phone during it. Spacey was also ordered to stay away from the alleged victim and his family. His lawyers entered a not guilty plea on his behalf and a pre-trial hearing was set for 4 March. Judge Thomas S Barrett said Spacey would not have to appear then, but must be available by phone. Spacey was ordered to stay away from the alleged victim and his family.
The judge granted a request by Spacey’s attorneys to preserve the alleged victim’s cellphone data for six months after the date of the alleged assault. Spacey attorney Alan Jackson said there was data within that would be “likely exculpatory”. Barrett granted a request by Spacey’s attorneys to preserve the alleged victim’s cellphone data for six months after the date of the alleged assault. Spacey attorney Alan Jackson said there was data within that would be “likely exculpatory”.
The arraignment brought a media frenzy to an island some of the world’s richest and most famous people retreat to in part because of the invisibility and anonymity it offers. Media trucks lined the street outside the courthouse before dawn and locals on the island, which teems with tourists in the summer but quiets down in the winter, drove by slowly, taking photos of reporters standing in line in the cold. The arraignment brought a media frenzy to an island some of the world’s richest and most famous people retreat to in part because of the invisibility and anonymity it offers. It was standing-room only inside the only courthouse as journalists and curious locals crowded into the small room. A news helicopter hovered over the island, broadcasting images of Spacey’s arrival and departure.
It was standing-room only inside the island’s only courthouse as journalists and curious locals crowded into the small room. As he left, Spacey ignored questions shouted by the media and entered an SUV parked outside the courthouse. As he got into the vehicle, an onlooker shouted “Underwood 2020!” – a reference to the American president Spacey played on the Netflix series House of Cards.
After the short hearing, as he left, Spacey ignored questions shouted by the media and entered an SUV parked outside the courthouse. As he got into the vehicle, an onlooker shouted “Underwood 2020!” – a reference to the American president Spacey played on the Netflix series House of Cards.
After the charge was announced last month, Spacey released a video in which he said, in the voice of Frank Underwood: “I’m certainly not going to pay the price for the thing I didn’t do.” It was unclear whether he was referring to the Nantucket charge. Spacey has also faced other allegations.
Spacey had asked to skip the arraignment, saying his “presence [would] amplify the negative publicity already generated in connection with this case”. That request was denied.Spacey had asked to skip the arraignment, saying his “presence [would] amplify the negative publicity already generated in connection with this case”. That request was denied.
Sexual assault allegations were first publicly raised against Spacey in October 2017, amid the first growth of the #MeToo movement, which then centered around allegations against former film producer Harvey Weinstein. Sexual assault allegations were first publicly raised against Spacey in October 2017 by the actor Anthony Rapp, who said that when he was 14 and Spacey was 26, the older man made a sexual advance on him.
Heather Unruh, formerly a prominent Boston TV news anchor, tweeted then: “The #weinsteinscandal has emboldened me – #truth time. I was a Kevin Spacey fan until he assaulted a loved one. Time the dominoes fell.” After BuzzFeed published a story detailing Rapp’s allegations, Spacey responded on Twitter, writing: “I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago. But if I did behave as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behaviour and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years.”
After that, the actor Anthony Rapp said that when he was 14 and Spacey was 26, the older man made a sexual advance. Spacey said he did not remember the alleged incident, but apologised for “deeply inappropriate drunken behaviour”. A month after Rapp’s allegations surfaced, Heather Unruh, formerly a Boston TV news anchor, said her son had been groped by Spacey while working as a busboy at the Club Car restaurant.
Overall, more than 30 individuals have made allegations against Spacey.
On Christmas Eve, just after prosecutors announced charges had been filed regarding the Nantucket allegations, Spacey released on social media a video in which he appeared to channel his House of Cards character.
At one point, he appeared to address the allegations against him, saying: “You wouldn’t believe the worst without evidence, would you? You wouldn’t rush to judgement without facts, would you?”
But in court on Monday, his demeanour was far removed from the bombastic, confident and combative president he played. He stared silently at the judge.
Spacey arrived on the island by private plane just before the arraignment and left shortly after it finished. In new filings, attorney Alan Jackson said preserving electronic data would reveal that Unruh’s son joked about the alleged incident and that his mother is the true driving force behind the allegations.
An audio recording of a 20 December court hearing obtained by the Boston Globe also indicated how Spacey’s lawyers might approach the allegation.
In the recording, Jackson highlighted how Unruh’s son did not report the incident right away, how he first approached Spacey, lied about his age, consumed large amounts of alcohol, remained in Spacey’s company and told investigators that when Spacey groped him, he did not tell him to stop or move away despite saying it went on for about three minutes.
“That’s an incredibly long time to have a strange man’s hands in your pants, correct?” Jackson asked state police trooper Gerald Donovan, who interviewed the alleged victim and issued the criminal complaint.
Kevin Spacey's creepy video looks like a cynical attempt at distraction | Michael SegalovKevin Spacey's creepy video looks like a cynical attempt at distraction | Michael Segalov
A month later Unruh told reporters her son had been groped by Spacey while working as a busboy at the Club Car restaurant. Unruh said Spacey got her son drunk and then grabbed his genitals during the incident. She said her son left the restaurant when Spacey went to the bathroom. According to the complaint, Unruh’s son said he approached Spacey after he finished his shift at the Club Car, one of the first restaurants visitors see after getting off the high-speed ferry from the mainland. He told investigators he was star-struck and eager to get a photo with the celebrity that he could post on Instagram.
On Monday Mitchell Garabedian, the civil attorney representing the young man, said in a statement emailed to the Guardian: “By reporting the sexual assault, my client is a determined and encouraging voice for those victims not yet ready to report being sexually assaulted. My client is leading by example.” He continued hanging out with Spacey, he said, even though the actor made him uncomfortable when he turned the conversation to penis size and invited the young man back to his place. Later in the evening, he alleges, Spacey reached into his pants and fondled him for about three minutes. When Spacey went to the restroom, the accuser says an unknown woman who had observed the incident told him to escape.
Some Nantucketers interviewed by reporters arrived on the island have been expressing their displeasure. To Bruce Percelay, publisher of Nantucket Magazine, the alleged incident involving Spacey and the young man was a violation of what Nantucket is all about. The alleged victim told investigators he did not know what to do when Spacey touched him and that he was afraid of getting in trouble for drinking underage or getting his place of work in trouble.
“There’s a presumed safeness to this island unlike many places,” he told the Guardian on Saturday, two days before the court hearing and its attendant media circus. “You don’t expect violations like the one that was [allegedly] perpetrated by Kevin Spacey. It just doesn’t happen on Nantucket. On Monday, his civil attorney, Mitchell Garabedian, said in a statement: “By reporting the sexual assault, my client is a determined and encouraging voice for those victims not yet ready to report being sexually assaulted. My client is leading by example.”
“This type of celebrity just doesn’t fit the ethos of Nantucket.” In the days leading up to the arraignment, many islanders told the Guardian they were dreading the interruption to a calm and quiet winter.
“Nantucket, in general, is uncomfortable being in the spotlight, and especially for this sort of thing,” said Rob Ranney, a real estate broker. “Most people who live here generally understand that all types of celebrities visit the island during the summer, but hopefully leave their real world problems on the mainland. Apparently that was not the case here.”

Kevin SpaceyKevin Spacey
#MeToo movement#MeToo movement
US crimeUS crime
US televisionUS television
MassachusettsMassachusetts
newsnews
Share on FacebookShare on Facebook
Share on TwitterShare on Twitter
Share via EmailShare via Email
Share on LinkedInShare on LinkedIn
Share on PinterestShare on Pinterest
Share on Google+Share on Google+
Share on WhatsAppShare on WhatsApp
Share on MessengerShare on Messenger
Reuse this contentReuse this content