Los Angeles: The prosecutor at the trial of Hollywood star Kevin Spacey has characterized him as a "sexual bully" who engages in "sexual assault against other men" and takes pleasure in making others feel powerless and uncomfortable. The opening statement shed light on the allegations against the 'American Beauty' star.
Christine Agnew KC for the prosecution told 12 jurors that Spacey’s preferred method of assault is to “grab aggressively other men in the crotch” but that “on one occasion things went further than that.”
The Oscar-winning ‘House of Cards’ and ‘Se7en’ star denies the 12 charges against him, including sexual assault and indecent assault, alleged to have been committed between 2001 and 2013.
As per Deadline, Agnew, who urged jurors to “keep yourself grounded” and avoid becoming “star struck,” said the jury over the next four weeks will hear from four men during the trial, all in their 20s or 30s, who attracted the attention of Spacey — who is being tried under his real name, Kevin Spacey Fowler.
She said: “None of the men wanted to be touched by Kevin Spacey Fowler in a sexual way but he doesn’t seem to have cared very much for their feelings. He did what he wanted to do for his own personal sexual gratification.”
“What does the defendant say in answer to these allegations?,” she added. “Well, in relation to some, he suggests that they are quite simply made up. In relation to others, he accepts that there was a sexual encounter between him and the other man but asserts that anything that took place would have taken place with the consent of the other man.”
Agnew labelled Spacey a man who “sexually assaults other men, a man who does not respect personal boundaries or space, a man who it would seem delights in making others feel powerless and uncomfortable, a sexual bully.” Concluding her opening remarks to the jury, Agnew KC said Spacey had “abused the power and influence that his reputation and fame afforded him.”
(With IANS inputs)