Crime & Safety
Kevin Spacey's Lawyers: Accuser Has Financial Reasons To Lie
Spacey's attorneys, who were without their high-profile client Monday, said his accuser is eyeing a lucrative civil suit after this case.
NANTUCKET, MA — Kevin Spacey's lawyers argued a former Boston news anchor and her son who accused the Hollywood star of sexually assaulting him have "significant financial motive" to make up the allegations.
Spacey's lawyers, who appeared in Nantucket District Court Monday morning without their high-profile defendant, said the criminal charges brought against Spacey are a precursor to a potentially lucrative civil suit Heather Unruh's son may bring.
One of the many motions Spacey's lawyers filed said, "Given [Spacey’s] status as a public figure, [the alleged victim] and his family members have a significant financial motive to fabricate the...allegations," according to NBC Boston's Caroline Connolly.
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Other motions were related to getting more cellphone data from the accuser and documents from the family's attorney. A judge approved a motion to expand the timeline of cellphone data - including texts and photos - Spacey's team can preserve to back to a news conference Unruh held outlining the accusations.
Spacey's lawyers said cellphone data could show the incident at the bar was the subject of jokes between the accuser and his friends, leaving out the alleged sexual assault until his mother went public with it.
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A decision on the other motions were put off until a later date.
Spacey, 59, pleaded not guilty in January to indecent assault and battery. He is accused of sticking his hands down the pants of ex-WCVB news anchor Unruh's son, grabbing his genitals. Unruh said at a 2017 news conference that Spacey bought her then-18-year-old son drinks at The Club Car in Nantucket, getting him drunk beforehand.
Accusations of Spacey's sexual misconduct got him written off the Netflix hit "House of Cards," where he played a manipulative, menacing politician. Spacey appeared to resurrect the character of Frank Underwood in a bizarre YouTube clip on Christmas Eve, asking viewers if they would believe accusations without evidence.
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