Kevin Spacey trial: Actor was 'tried by social media', court hears

Oscar-winning histrion Kevin Spacey was "tried by societal media" aft helium was accused of intersexual assaults, a tribunal has heard.

He is charged with 9 intersexual offences relating to 4 men allegedly committed betwixt 2001 and 2013.

The 63-year-old American sat successful the dock connected Thursday astatine Southwark Crown Court successful London arsenic defence barrister Patrick Gibbs KC gave a closing speech.

Mr Spacey, a two-time Oscar winner, denies each of the charges against him.

"What the defence suggests is that 3 radical person lied and they person lied successful ways and for reasons which, ultimately, volition lone ever beryllium known to themselves," said Mr Gibbs, who suggested the 4th complainant was intoxicated.

He told jurors: "It's not a transgression to similar sex, adjacent if you're celebrated and it's not a transgression to person sex, adjacent if you're famous, and it's not a transgression to person casual sex.

"And it's not a transgression to person enactment with idiosyncratic of the aforesaid enactment due to the fact that it's 2023 not 1823."

He challenged the Crown's assertion that determination was a "pattern of similarity" betwixt the accusers due to the fact that 3 assertion Mr Spacey "grabbed" them by the crotch, a word Mr Spacey antecedently told the tribunal helium "objected" to.

He told the assemblage it was "easy" to prevarication convincingly, particularly erstwhile it is astir idiosyncratic specified arsenic Kevin Spacey who helium described arsenic a antheral "who is promiscuous, not publically out, though everyone successful the businesses knows he's cheery who wants to beryllium conscionable a mean feline to portion brew and laughter and fume weed and beryllium successful the beforehand and walk clip with younger radical who he's attracted to".

He said possibly Mr Spacey had led "a spot of an unusual life", but that it was "a beingness that makes you an casual people erstwhile the net turns against you and you're tried by societal media".

"That's erstwhile these claims were taken to the police, erstwhile it was, I suggest, lone excessively casual to bash and the prospects of a pay-off from the bandwagon were astatine their astir irresistible."

Mr Gibbs praised Sir Elton John and his hubby David Furnish for risking the "wrath of the internet" to beryllium called arsenic defence witnesses aft they gave grounds via video nexus from Monaco connected Monday.

Mr Spacey pleaded not blameworthy successful January to 3 counts of indecent assault, 3 counts of intersexual battle and 1 number of causing a idiosyncratic to prosecute successful intersexual enactment without consent.

He besides antecedently denied 4 further charges of intersexual battle and 1 number of causing a idiosyncratic to prosecute successful penetrative intersexual enactment without consent.

A further complaint of indecent assault, an alternate count, was added mid-trial - taking the full fig of alleged offences listed connected the indictment to 13.

On Wednesday, the 4 indecent battle charges, which were each alternate counts, were struck disconnected by the judge, owed to a "legal technicality" and not arsenic a effect of the prosecution abandoning immoderate allegation.