Kevin Spacey found not liable in Anthony Rapp's sexual abuse lawsuit

Kevin Spacey is not liable for battery against Anthony Rapp, a New York jury determined after a three-week sexual abuse trial.

The jury deliberated for nearly two hours on Thursday following closing arguments and determined that Rapp did not prove that Spacey "touched a sexual or intimate part" of him during a party at the House of Cards actor's New York apartment in 1986, when Rapp was 14 and Spacey was 26. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan formally dismissed the case.

"Mr. Spacey is grateful to live in a country where the citizens have a right to trial by impartial jurors who make their decision based on evidence and not rumor or social media," Spacey's attorney Jennifer Keller tells EW. "And he is deeply thankful to this particular jury. This was a highly educated group of six women and five men, all except one college graduates, and most with graduate degrees. Their verdict was swift and decisive. Justice was done today."

ED JONES/AFP/Getty Kevin Spacey arrives at United States District Court in New York on Oct. 20, 2022

Richard Steigman, Rapp's attorney, told EW in a statement on Thursday, "Anthony told his truth in court. While we respect the jury's verdict, nothing changes that."

The Star Trek: Discovery actor posted a further statement on Twitter following the verdict, writing: "I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have my case heard before a jury, and I thank the members of the jury for their service. Bringing this lawsuit was always about shining a light, as part of the larger movement to stand up against all forms of sexual violence. I pledge to keep on advocating for efforts to ensure that we can live and work in a world that is free from sexual violence of any kind. I sincerely hope that survivors continue to tell their stories and fight for accountability."

Rapp, now 50, previously testified that he felt like a "deer in the headlights" when Spacey, 63, lifted him "like a groom carrying a bride over the threshold" and took him to a bed, where he climbed on top of him. He called it "the most traumatic single event" of his life. In his own testimony, Spacey denied Rapp's allegations and claimed he never made a sexual pass at him.

Sylvain Lefevre/WireImage; ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images) Anthony Rapp and Kevin Spacey

Spacey also got emotional while responding to Rapp's previous testimony in which he called the American Beauty actor a fraud for not living openly as a gay man throughout his career, citing complicated family dynamics with his "white supremacist and neo-Nazi" father. "To call someone a fraud is to say someone is living a lie," Spacey said. "I wasn't living a lie. I was just reluctant to talk about my personal life."

Rapp is one of more than a dozen men who have accused Spacey of sexual misconduct in recent years. When Rapp first came forward with his allegations back in 2017, Spacey initially apologized on social media. "I honestly do not remember the encounter," he wrote. "But if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior, and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years."

Related content:

• Kevin Spacey testifies that he didn't come out as gay because of his 'neo-Nazi' father

• Anthony Rapp testifies against Kevin Spacey in sexual misconduct trial: 'It felt very wrong'

• Kevin Spacey dropped from Gateway to the West movie amid sexual assault charges