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Actor Kevin Spacey was on Wednesday found not guilty in a London court of a series of sexual assaults against several accusers.
Twelve jurors at the Southwark Crown Court had begun deliberating at about noon on Monday following a three-week trial. Spacey, 64, had pleaded not guilty to 12 charges of sexual assault.
Prosecutors had sought during the trial to label Spacey as a “sexual bully,” and the actor took the stand to defend himself. Musician Elton John appeared as a witness for the defense, testifying remotely from Monaco about Spacey once attending a gala at his Windsor home.
Spacey had appeared in a London court in July 2022 to plead not guilty after Metropolitan Police formally charged him.
The Crown Prosecution Service announced five charges against Spacey in May 2022, accusing him of sexual assaults against three men and one charge of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent, prosecutors said. An additional seven charges were added in November 2022.
The Academy Award-winning actor has faced allegations and charges of sexual assault in both the United Kingdom and United States. He was found not liable in October in a civil sexual assault suit brought by fellow actor Anthony Rapp in New York City.
In a lengthy interview in the German publication ZEITmagazin in June, Spacey said he was “ready” for a career comeback when and if he was cleared in the U.K. case.
“…I know that there are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges in London,” he said. “The second that happens, they’re ready to move forward.”
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