June 24, 2020 |
Ron Jeremy Arraignment Delayed Until Friday, No Plea Entered |
LOS ANGELES—Ron Jeremy remains in custody on Wednesday after his arraignment on multiple charges of forcible rape was delayed until Friday, according to information posted online by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Jeremy is currently housed in Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles, after his bail was set at $6.6 million. A warrant charging Jeremy with three counts of forcible rape and five other counts of sexual offenses was filed on Monday by Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey, and Deputy D.A. Paul Thompson. The complaint lists four separate victims, identified only as Jane Doe Numbers One through Four. The most recent charge dates from less than one year ago, July 15, 2019, and alleges that Jeremy committed forcible rape against Jane Doe Number Four. According to a statement by the District Attorney’s office, Jeremy allegedly committed that rape at the same West Hollywood bar where he sexually assaulted two women in separate incidents two years earlier. In one of those incidents, the complaint alleges, Jeremy committed sexual assault against Jane Doe Number Two on March 11, 2017 by touching her in an “intimate part” while unlawfully restraining her, together with “an accomplice." When AVN asked whether the alleged accomplice had been charged or arrested, or if any further information was available, District Attorney’s Office Assistant Chief of Media Relations Greg Risling said he could not comment. Jeremy appeared in court at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday. But Jeremy did not enter a plea, and Superior Court Judge Miguel Espinoza delayed the arraignment until Friday, June 26. Jeremy, who appeared on Tuesday handcuffed and wearing a mask, is set to return to the courtroom then. Though he entered no plea on Tuesday, Jeremy took to his Twitter account to declare himself “innocent of all charges,” adding, “I can’t wait to prove my innocence in court!” Jeremy’s lawyer, Stuart Goldfarb, called the bail amount set by Espinoza “horrendously high,” according to an Associated Press report. Goldfarb also stated that Jeremy was innocent, saying that his prolific sexual exploits indicate that he would not commit sexual assault. “He's been with over 4,000 women the past 40 years and he claims he's running ahead of Wilt Chamberlain in that arena,” Goldfarb said in a press briefing following Tuesday’s hearing. “There's absolutely no reason for him to ever be aggressive with women. He's absolutely innocent of the charges. It's not a close call.” Judge Espinoza is a former sex crimes prosecutor with the Los Angeles County D.A.’s office. He was appointed to the Superior Court bench in 2018 by Governor Jerry Brown, and won his reelection bid the the March 3, 2020, election. Jeremy has also been dropped by his manager, according to an account by The Hollywood Reporter. Dante Rusciolelli, owner of Golden Artists Entertainment, told THR that he stood by Jeremy after earlier, similar accusations in 2016, because he believed evidence showed Jeremy’s innocence. But that has not happened yet, this time, Rusciolelli said. “We were not given any proof of his innocence at this time," Rusciolelli said, as quoted by THR reporter Ryan Parker. "We hope that these allegations against him are not true, but if they are, we hope that he is prosecuted."
|