Kevin Spacey accused of being ‘sexual bully’ who got ‘sexual gratification’ from victims’ discomfort, court told
The prosecution has opened its case in the Kevin Spacey trial with claims the actor was a “sexual bully” who “delights in making others feel powerless and uncomfortable”, and whose “preferred method of assault” was to “grab” other men “aggressively in the crotch”.
Spacey is in court in the UK on 12 charges – including three of indecent assault and seven of sexual assault – in relation to four men.
Read more: Kevin Spacey trial – as it happened
In a short session lasting just an hour-and-a-half, prosecutor Christine Agnew described the allegations of four men who claim to have been sexually assaulted by the actor.
The 63-year-old star – who was present in court – was described by Ms Agnew as “a famous actor who has won a number of awards,” and by one of his alleged victims as “a star, a golden boy”.
The two-time Oscar winner is known for roles in productions such as House of Cards, American Beauty and The Usual Suspects.
The relevance of Spacey’s fame was flagged early on, with the prosecution warning the jury not to become “star struck” or “overwhelmed,” while the defence said the trial would offer “insights into both sides of fame”, including “the way people act towards you” when you are famous.
The court also heard from the statements of the four victims – none of whom are known to one another according to the prosecution – and who will remain anonymous in coverage of the case.
Ms Agnew 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.”
‘Getting angry simply turned him on’
The first alleged victim, who worked with Spacey in the early 2000s in London, said the actor touched him inappropriately on numerous occasions and at one point “grabbed him so hard” while he was driving that he nearly drove off the road.
He said he asked Spacey on numerous occasions not to touch him, but added Spacey laughed at his request, and he believed “his getting angry simply turned him on”.
He said Spacey seemed “confident” he wouldn’t tell anyone about the alleged assaults.
The alleged victim added he thinks that could have been due to his reputation as a “worldwide star,” or possibly considering he would be “too embarrassed, too ashamed” to make a complaint.
The second alleged victim, who met Spacey at a charity event in London in 2005, said Spacey made many inappropriate comments and said sexual things to him out of the earshot of others, before allegedly grabbing his penis with “such force it was painful”.
The alleged victim said he told a friend about it around a week later, but told no one else.
Claims of unwanted sex act, advances and groping
The third alleged victim, who said he successfully auditioned for a show being put on at the Old Vic Theatre and later approached Spacey as a mentor, described going for a drink at his flat.
He said he woke up to find Spacey allegedly carrying out an unwanted act of oral sex.
He said Spacey told him not to mention what had happened or that he had been to his flat, and added he left in shock, later crying at a bus stop.
The fourth alleged victim, who met Spacey in a village pub in late 2017 when the actor came in with his dog, said that after inviting him and a friend back to the expensive house in which he was staying, Spacey kissed his neck and grabbed his crotch.
He said he left the house in “a panicky state” and called his father to tell him what had happened.
The men were all in their 20s to early 30s when the alleged assaults took place and all the alleged incidents are said to have happened between 2001 and 2013 – a time when Spacey was working and living mainly in the UK.
Prosecution: Spacey ‘took what and who he wanted’
The prosecution said Spacey would claim some of the allegations were “made up” and that others were “consensual”.
She also told the jury it would be their job to decide whether the alleged victims were either “courageous” in coming forward now, or “lying” in order to benefit financially.
Ms Agnew concluded: “Kevin Spacey Fowler abused the power and influence that his reputation and fame afforded him; taking advantage of his popularity and prominence, his illustriousness and influence.
“Taking what and who he wanted when he wanted.”
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What is Kevin Spacey accused of?
Defence warns jury to expect ‘damned lies’
Meanwhile, in a brief statement, the defence – led by Patrick Gibbs – said Spacey had returned to the UK to answer the allegations against him, and “say in full in due course what actually happened”.
He warned the jury they would hear “some truths,” “some half-truths,” “some deliberate exaggerations” and “many damned lies” during evidence.
Spacey is facing 12 charges – all of which he denies.
They are: four counts of sexual assault; three counts of indecent assault; three counts of sexual assault; one count of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent and one of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity.
This last charge is the most serious, and carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment.
The case will continue at London’s Southwark Crown Court on Monday, with the full trial set to last around four weeks.
Spacey has been granted unconditional bail.
It’s 5.30am, but the car park outside a laundrette in south central Los Angeles is already bustling.
A woman is setting up a stand selling tacos on the pavement and the sun is beginning to rise behind the palm trees.
A group of seven women and two men are gathered in a circle, most wearing khaki green t-shirts.
The leader, a man named Francisco “Chavo” Romero, begins by asking how everyone is feeling. “Angry,” a few of them respond. “Proud of the community for pushing back,” says another.
Ron, a high school history teacher, issues a rallying cry. “This is like Vietnam,” he says. “We’re taking losses, but in the end we’re going to win. It’s a war.”
Francisco ‘Chavo’ Romero leads a volunteer group, attempting to warn people ahead of ICE raids
This is what the resistance against Donald Trump’s immigration policy looks like here. In the past month, immigration and customs enforcement agents – known as ICE – have intensified their raids on homes and workplaces across Los Angeles.
Since the beginning of June, nearly 2,800 undocumented immigrants have been arrested in the city, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The previous monthly high was just over 850 arrests in May this year.
Police use tear gas against protesters, angry at a recent immigration raid at a farm in Camarillo, California. Pic: AP
Videos have circulated online of people being tackled to the ground in the car park of DIY shops, in car washes and outside homes. The videos have prompted outrage, protests and a fightback.
“Chavo” and Ron belong to a group of organised volunteers called Union del Barrio. Every morning, a group of them meet, mostly in areas which have high immigrant populations.
The day I meet them, they’re in an area of LA which is heavily Latino. Armed with walkie talkies to communicate with each other, megaphones to warn the community and leaflets to raise awareness they set out in cars in different directions.
A volunteer from Union del Barrio shows Sky’s Martha Kelner how they try to stay one step ahead of ICE agents
They’re looking for cars used by ICE agents to monitor “targets”.
“That vehicle looks a little suspicious,” says Ron, pointing out a white SUV with blacked-out windows, “but there’s nobody in it”.
An elderly Latino man is standing on a street corner, cutting fruit to sell at his stall. “He’s the exact target that they’re looking for,” Ron says. “That’s what they’re doing now. The low-hanging fruit, the easy victim. And so that is proving to be more successful for their quotas.”
This man, selling fruit on a street corner in LA, is a potential target of immigration agents
In the end, it turns out to be a quiet morning in this part of LA, no brewing immigration operations. But elsewhere in the city, dawn raids are happening.
ICE agents are under pressure from the White House to boost their deportation numbers in line with Donald Trump’s campaign promise to crack down on illegal immigration.
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In June, tear gas and rubber bullets were fired at protestors demonstrating against immigration raids
Maria’s husband Javier was one of those arrested in LA. He came to the United States from Mexico when he was 19 and is now 58.
The couple have three grown-up children and two grandchildren. But Javier’s work permit expired two years ago, according to Maria and so he was living here illegally.
Maria’s husband Javier was arrested after his work permit expired
She shows me a video taken last month when Javier was at work at a car wash in Pomona, an area of LA. He is being handcuffed and arrested by armed and masked ICE agents, forced into a car. He is now being held at a detention centre two hours away.
“I know they’re doing their job,” she says, “but it’s like, ‘you don’t have to do it like that.’ Getting them and, you know, forcing people and pushing them down on the ground. They’re not animals.”
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US troops accused of ‘political stunt’ after park raid
Maria wipes away tears as she explains the impact of his absence for the past four weeks. “It’s been so hard without him,” she says. “You feel alone when you get used to somebody and he’s not there any more. We’ve never been apart for as long as this.”
The family have a lawyer and is appealing for him to remain in the US, but Maria fears he will be sent back to Mexico or even a third country.
Maria fears her husband, who has lived in the US for nearly 40 years, will be sent back to Mexico
“I don’t know what to say to my grandkids because the oldest one, who is five was very attached to his papas, as he calls him. And he’s asking me, ‘When is papa coming home?’ and I don’t know what to say. He’s not a criminal.”
The fear in immigrant communities can be measured by the empty restaurant booths and streets that are far quieter than usual.
People in LA are being asked to report sightings of ICE officials so others can be warned
I meet Soledad at the Mexican restaurant she owns in Hollywood. When I arrive, she’s watching the local news on the TV as yet another raid unfolds at a nearby farm.
She’s shaking her head as ICE agents face off with protesters and military helicopters hover overhead. “I am scared. I am very scared,” she says.
All of her eight employees are undocumented, and four of them are too scared to come into work, she says, in case they get arrested. The process to get papers, she says, is too long and too expensive.
Read more from Sky News:
Farmer first to die during ICE raids
Trump warns comic over citizenship
Soledad, who owns a Mexican restaurant, plans to hide her illegal workers if immigration officials arrive
“They call me and tell me they are too afraid to come in because immigration is around,” she says.
“I have to work double shifts to be able to make up for their hours, and yes, I am very desperate, and sometimes I cry… We have no sales, and no money to pay their wages.”
There is just one woman eating fajitas at a booth, where there would usually be a lunchtime rush. People are chilled by the raids.
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Soledad says she plans to hide her illegal workers if immigration officials arrive.
“I’ve told them, get inside the fridge, hide behind the stove, climb up where we have a space to store boxes, do not run because they will hunt you down.”
The White House says they’re protecting the country from criminals. ICE agents have been shot at while carrying out operations, their work becoming more dangerous by the day.
The tension here is ratcheting up. Deportation numbers are rising too. But the order from Donald Trump is to arrest even more people living here illegally.
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