Steven Seagal Sexual Assault Case Declined by Los Angeles DA
Steven Seagal will not face charges stemming from a sexual assault accusation made against him.
The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office said Friday that it has declined to pursue a case against the actor.
Paperwork from the D.A.’s office cited the statute of limitations.
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“The reporting party alleged that on or between May 1, 2002, and August 31, 2002, she was sexually assaulted by the suspect,” the paperwork reads.
According to the paperwork, the case was previously declined for further investigation, and a subsequent investigation “did not yield evidence sufficient to meet the requirements of P.C. 803(f).”
“Therefore, the case is declined due to the expiration of the statute of limitations,” the paperwork states.
Also Read: Steven Seagal Accuser Faviola Dadis Says She Was Doubted on Live TV: 'That Killed Me'
In a statement issued Friday, Lisa Bloom, attorney for Seagal accuser Faviola Dadis — who alleged that the actor fondled her breasts and grabbed her crotch during an audition for a movie in a Beverly Hills hotel when she was a 17-year-old model — said that the district attorney’s office had its hands “tied” by the law in declining the case.
“The Los Angeles D.A.’s office recently notified my client Faviola Dadis and me that it would not prosecute Steven Seagal, who has been multiply accused of sexual assault, for her claim that he sexually assaulted her when she was 17 years old. The sole reason for its refusal is the statute of limitations, and California law’s requirement that the victim in this situation (reporting child sexual assault after the age of 21) have independent evidence that clearly and independently corroborates her claims,” Bloom said in a statement provided to TheWrap.
“We appreciate the DA’s office’s careful review of this case. Its hands are tied by this unfair law which bars the courthouse door even to young women like my client, Faviola Dadis, who is highly credible. The law fails to recognize that few minors are emotionally ready to seek justice against their rapists until many years later,” the statement continued. “Instead, it offers rapists a ‘get out of jail free’ card if they simply pass an arbitrary time deadline. And the law seems to presume that victims are lying, creating an unfairly high evidentiary standard not required in other criminal cases. Few rapists commit their crimes in the presence of witnesses.”
TheWrap broke the news of Dadis’ accusations against Seagal last year.
A second case against Seagal, presented by the Beverly Hills Police Department, was declined by the D.A.’s office in September. There are no cases pending against Seagal with the office.
More than a dozen women have accused Seagal of sexual misconduct. The actor has previously denied the accusations made against him, saying that his accusers had “lied and been paid to lie about me without any evidence, any proof, any witnesses.”
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