A judge has ruled that a man accusing Kevin Spacey in a $40 million lawsuit of sexually assaulting him when he was 14 years old cannot proceed in court anonymously.
The man has gone by “C.D.” since filing the September 2020 lawsuit in New York state court before it moved to federal court, but U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan in Manhattan ruled this can no longer be the case.
The judge claims C.D. protecting his privacy could prevent those with information who might support Spacey from coming forward, adding that “his privacy interest is sufficient to warrant allowing him to litigate his sexual assault allegations anonymously.”
“The evidence suggests that C.D. knowingly and repeatedly took the risk that any of these individuals at one point or another would reveal his true identity in a manner that would bring that identity to wide public attention, particularly given Spacey’s celebrity,” Judge Kaplan wrote in a memorandum opinion reported by Deadline.
C.D. now has 10 days to refile under his own name, but his lawyers have told the court already he “is emotionally unable to proceed with the action and will discontinue his claims.”
The news follows 2017 accusations and subsequent lawsuits from Star Trekactor Anthony Rapp and numerous others over Spacey’s alleged behavior. Just last week, Scotland Yard officers who investigated Spacey over six Bristish sexual assault allegations have passed findings over to Crown Prosecution Service, whichwill decide whether to charge him or not.
