Kevin Spacey, the Oscar-winning U.S. actor, expressed his emotions after being found not guilty by a London court on Wednesday of multiple sex assault charges involving four men. The jury, after more than 12 hours of deliberation, acquitted him of nine charges dating back to 2004 to 2013, a period when he worked at London's Old Vic theatre.
On his 64th birthday, Spacey was visibly moved, shedding tears and mouthing "thank you" to the jurors before leaving the courtroom through a side door. He later spoke with five of the jurors in the court lobby and then addressed the media outside the Southwark Crown Court.
The actor said he had a lot to process after the day's events and expressed his humility at the outcome of the trial. He thanked the jury for carefully examining all the evidence before reaching their decision.
Amid a swarm of cameras, Spacey walked to a waiting taxi, where some members of the public clapped and wished him a happy birthday, and one person shouted their support for him.
Throughout the four-week trial, prosecutors portrayed Spacey as a "sexual bully" who had aggressively groped three of the men and performed oral sex on the fourth while he was unconscious in his London apartment. In his defense, Spacey argued that the case against him was weak, and if any incidents occurred, they were consensual. He admitted to being promiscuous and described himself as a "big flirt" who engaged in casual and indiscriminate sexual encounters.
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While he acknowledged making a clumsy pass at one of the men, he vehemently denied assaulting anyone. Spacey suggested that the accusers were seeking financial gain, as three of them had filed civil lawsuits against him. One of them had allegedly demanded a payment of over £450,000.
He also disclosed that he had hired private investigators to look into the backgrounds of at least three of the men involved in the case.
The trial has been closely watched due to the high-profile nature of the accused and the serious nature of the allegations. With the verdict now delivered, the legal proceedings have come to an end, but the impact of the case on both Kevin Spacey's career and the larger conversation around sexual assault allegations remains to be seen.
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