Actor Anthony Rapp and another man, identified as C.D, have filed a lawsuit against Kevin Spacey, alleging he sexually assaulted them when they were teenagers in the Eighties.
Rapp, who was the first person to accuse Spacey of sexual misconduct in October 2017, alleged that Spacey forced himself on him at a party in 1986. The other plaintiff, C.D., alleged that he and Spacey had several sexual encounters during the early Eighties when C.D. was 14.
Rapp and C.D. were able to file their claim under New York’s Child Victims Act, which allows victims of childhood abuse to bring lawsuits over such crimes even after they’ve fallen outside the statute of limitations. Both Rapp and C.D. have accused Spacey of assault, battery and intentional inflection of emotional distress and are suing for unspecified damages.
In a statement, attorneys representing Rapp and C.D., Ben Rubinowitz and Peter Saghir, said, “Kevin Spacey sexually abused Mr. Rapp and another gentleman, who needs to remain anonymous, when they were 14 years old. Spacey’s conduct was not only improper and abusive, but it was a crime. In bringing this action under New York’s Child Victims Act, Mr. Rapp, who previously came forward to Buzzfeed about the abuse, and our client who needs to remain anonymous have taken the first step to hold Spacey accountable. This lawsuit sends a strong message that no matter how wealthy, powerful or famous you may be you are not above the law. Our clients are looking forward to their day in Court and to obtaining justice for a crime that never should have happened.”
A lawyer for Spacey did not immediately return Rolling Stone’s request for comment. At the time Rapp first came forward with his allegations, Spacey wrote he was “beyond horrified to hear [Rapp’s] story.” “I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago,” the actor wrote on Twitter.”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.”
Rapp’s accusation in the complaint mirrors the one he shared with Buzzfeed in October 2017. At the time, Rapp was 14 and a child actor on Broadway, when he attended a party at Spacey’s Manhattan apartment. At the party, according to the suit, Spacey “intentionally and voluntarily and without plaintiff’s consent engaged in an unwanted sexual advance with a 14-year-old and grabbed [Rapp’s] buttocks, lifted him onto a bed and laid on [his] body.”
Rapp, “fearing for his safety,” ran to the bathroom and was eventually able to leave the apartment while Spacey allegedly “tried to persuade [him] to stay.” The suit claims that, because of the encounter, Rapp “sustained psychological injuries, including but not limited to, severe emotional distress, humiliation, fright, anger, depression and anxiety; a severe shock to his nervous system; and has been caused to suffer mental anguish, emotional and psychological damage.”
C.D., meanwhile, claims that he was 12 when he met Spacey in 1981, when Spacey taught him in an acting class in Westchester County, New York. When C.D. was 14, Spacey allegedly invited him to his apartment, where Spacey “engaged in sexual acts with the plaintiff… including, but not limited to, the … plaintiff performing anal intercourse on defendant Spacey and oral sex.”
The suit claims that Spacey and C.D. “continued to engage in sexual acts on different occasions,” and during the final encounter Spacey “for the first time, attempted to anally sodomize the plaintiff, C.D.” According to the suit, C.D. resisted and told Spacey “No” multiple times, but Spacey allegedly did not stop. Per the suit, C.D. was “able to free himself” and fled Spacey’s apartment.
Similar to Rapp, C.D. also claims he suffered extensive psychological damage as a result of his alleged encounters with Spacey.
Rapp and C.D.’s lawsuit against Spacey comes after the disgraced actor saw charges dropped and dismissed in criminal and civil cases in Massachusetts and California last year. In the Massachusetts case, the charges were dropped after the accuser invoked the Fifth Amendment, while the California case was dismissed after the accuser died of natural causes.
From Rolling Stone US
