Sex assault charge dropped against actor Kevin Spacey

Posted By: Staff
July 17, 2019 @ 4:58 pm
ABC Entertainment

Nicole Harnishfeger-Pool/Getty Images

Nicole Harnishfeger-Pool/Getty Images(NANTUCKET) — Prosecutors in Nantucket, MA on Wednesday dropped a felony sexual assault charge against the actor Kevin Spacey.

The decision from Cape and Islands D.A. Michael O’Keefe came after Spacey’s accuser declined to testify at a pre-trial hearing about evidence.

Spacey had been accused of groping the young man at a Nantucket restaurant on July 7, 2016. The accuser told police he had gone over to ask the actor for a photo after his shift at the restaurant ended. He said Spacey bought him drinks, even though he was under 21 at the time, tried to get him to come home with him and then unzipped his pants and groped him for three minutes.

Spacey had pleaded not guilty.

The accuser declined to testify at a hearing earlier this month about exculpatory text messages the defense said were deleted, which raised questions about the viability of the case.

The hearing came days after the accuser dropped a civil suit he had filed against Spacey.