米俳優ケヴィン・スペイシー氏、性的暴行事件で無罪　英裁判所

【ロンドンＡＦＰ＝時事】英ロンドンの裁判所は２６日、性的暴行などの罪で訴追されていた米俳優ケヴィン・スペイシー氏に対し、９件全ての罪状について無罪を言い渡した。（写真は英ロンドンの裁判所に到着した米俳優ケヴィン・スペイシー氏）
　米アカデミー賞受賞歴もあるスペイシー氏は、性的暴行７件、同意なしの性的行為２件の罪に問われていた。
　同日、６４歳の誕生日を迎えたスペイシー氏に対し、数週間に及ぶ審理を経て、陪審団が無罪評決を下した。
　裁判所を出たスペイシー氏は報道陣を前に、陪審団への謝意を表した。
　スペイシー氏に対しては２０１７年以降、性暴力を受けたとする訴えが相次いだが、同氏は一貫して疑惑を否定してきた。
　２０２２年には、米ニューヨークの裁判所がスペイシー氏に対するセクハラ訴訟で原告側の訴えを退け、同氏側が勝訴。米マサチューセッツ州でも、性的暴行罪などで訴追されたものの、１９年に起訴が取り下げられている。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/07/28-16:26）

Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey was acquitted on Wednesday in Britain of nine alleged sex offences, in the latest court victory for the Oscar winner who was one of the first huge stars felled by the #MeToo movement.
The star of American Beauty and drama series House of Cards, who turned 64 on Wednesday, was acquitted by majority verdicts in London following a trial lasting several weeks.
I'm enormously grateful to the jury for having taken the time to examine all of the evidence and all of the facts carefully before they reached their decision and I am humbled by the outcome today, he told reporters outside court.
It comes less than a year after a New York court dismissed a $40 million sexual misconduct civil lawsuit brought against him, and follows charges of indecent and sexual assault being dropped in Massachusetts in 2019.
Spacey's once-stellar career has been halted by the various allegations of sexual offences, which first emerged in 2017 and which he has always denied.
The actor told Germany's Die Zeit that he expected to mount a comeback following the acquittal.
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 told the German national weekly. The second that happens, they're ready to move forward.
- 'Madness' -
The jury in London, which began considering the charges on Monday, cleared Spacey of all nine counts that he faced, after more than 12 hours of deliberations.
The alleged offences included seven counts of sexual assault, one count of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, and one count of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.
They were said to have occurred in 2005 and 2008 in London, and in 2013 in Gloucestershire, western England.
Jurors heard evidence from the four alleged victims, who cannot be named for legal reasons. British rock star Elton John was also among those to testify, as a witness for Spacey.
The prosecution claimed he was a sexual bully who revelled in making others feel uncomfortable, including by aggressively grabbing men's crotches.
One of victims, a former aspiring actor, said he woke up to find Spacey performing a sex act on him, suggesting the actor drugged him.
He was accused of grabbing another man's crotch so hard while driving to a fundraising event, that the car nearly came off the road.
Spacey, whose full name is Kevin Spacey Fowler, called the claims madness and a stab in the back.
He had been on unconditional bail since first being charged in Britain last year, and on Wednesday walked out of the south London court a free man.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said it had charged him following a thorough investigation by London's Metropolitan Police.
It is the role of the jury to consider the charges and we respect the decision of the court, a spokesman added.
- Career success -
Spacey enjoyed a highly successful decades-spanning career with roles such as a middle-aged father lusting after a teen in American Beauty, a serial killer in Se7en and the villain in Superman Returns.
He worked as artistic director at London's Old Vic Theatre between 2004 and 2015.
In 2017 he was one of the first stars caught up in the global #MeToo movement as he was accused of sexual assault by multiple young men.
He was dropped from the final season of the political drama House of Cards and other projects.
A New York court dismissed a $40 million civil sexual misconduct lawsuit brought against him in October last year.
The complainant, actor Anthony Rapp, alleged the star had assaulted him when he was 14. He brought the civil case after being told it was too late to bring a criminal charge but failed to convince the jury in that case.
In 2019, charges of indecent and sexual assault were dropped against Spacey in Massachusetts.