Rose McGowan Claims Drugs Were Planted On Her At Dulles Airport

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — Actress Rose McGowan, 44, who has been at the forefront of the national discussion on sexual misconduct after accusing Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of rape, filed court papers Tuesday to have Loudoun County drug charges against her dropped. An arrest warrant for McGowan on charges of felony drug possession, in this case cocaine, was issued late last October nearly nine months after she flew through Dulles International Airport.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said in a statement the warrant stemmed from McGowan allegedly leaving personal belongings that tested positive for narcotics on a United flight last Jan. 20 at Dulles International Airport. But her attorney argued Tuesday that the cocaine was planted in McGowan’s wallet, perhaps by someone working for disgraced movie producer Harvey Weinstein.

McGowan has charged that Weinstein raped her about 20 years ago and then hired private security agencies to collect information on her. The New Yorker reports investigators secretly recorded at least four meetings with McGowan as part of an attempt to stop the publication of the abuse allegations against Weinstein.

McGowan's attorney, Jessica Carmichael, asked a Loudoun County judge to dismiss the felony cocaine possession charge against the actress, suggesting the drug was planted in McGowan's wallet, WTOP reports. “There is simply no point in time at which the evidence places Ms. McGowan and the cocaine together in the same place,” Carmichael said.

According to charging documents, a cleaning crew found McGowan’s wallet next to her airplane seat after she disembarked at Dulles International Airport on Jan. 20, 2017. She had flown to DC to take part in last year’s Women’s March, the day after President Donald Trump took office.

Airport police said the wallet contained two small bags of white powder, which tested positive for cocaine.

Weinstein could face criminal charges for three cases of sexual assault or lewd behavior, says the Los Angeles Police Department. The Los Angeles District Attorney's office received the case on Feb. 1, and will examine the evidence and statute of limitations before deciding whether to file.

The case against Weinstein stems from a 2013 allegation — well within the statute of limitations for rape. Weinstein hasn't publicly commented on the allegations, but his spokesperson denied all allegations of nonconsensual sex.

Just last month, Loudoun County Commonwealth's Attorney Jim Plowman recused himself because of a conflict of interest, reports WTOP. Prince William County prosecutor Paul Ebert told the station Plowman asked him to take over the case because McGowan's attorney, James Hundley, represents Plowman in a federal civil rights case.

McGowan had been expected to appear in a courtroom for her arraignment last November, but a judge agreed to waive her appearance at her lawyer's request. She condemned the arrest as retaliation for her outspoken stance on sexual misconduct.

"Are they trying to silence me?" she tweeted Oct. 30. "There is a warrant out for my arrest in Virginia. What a load of HORSES**T."

In October 2017, after having her Twitter account temporarily suspended by the social-media service following a string of posts alleging cover-ups of Weinstein's treatment of women, McGowan said the movie producer raped her. Weinstein, who was fired from The Weinstein Company production house over allegations of sexual harassment and assault dating back decades, has denied sexually assaulting anyone.

Hundley is representing Plowman in a civil suit filed by, according to WTOP, "a Loudoun County resident who claimed Plowman was unconstitutionally restricting his free speech on the county's Facebook page." A U.S. District Judge ruled Plowman was allowed to removed Brian Davison's comments because a Facebook page is a limited public forum under the First Amendment. Davison is appealing the ruling.

One of McGowan's best-known roles was playing Paige Matthews on the WB channel's "Charmed" from 2001-06.

PHOTO: Actress Rose McGowan speaks on stage at The Women's Convention at Cobo Center on October 27, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)