LOS ANGELES — The arraignment hearing for Ron Jeremy on forcible rape and sexual assault charges, postponed last Wednesday, continued this morning at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles.
Jeremy pled "not guilty" and after presentations by his attorney and the DA, Judge Miguel Espinosa denied the motion to lower bail.
Bail was set to the DA's requested $6.6 million.
The next case date is August 31, with two days of preliminary hearings to be scheduled in the courthouse’s Department 30, known as “the arraignment court” and made famous as the starting point of countless celebrity trials covered by the mainstream media.
Speaking to XBIZ immediately after the hearing, Jeremy's attorney, Stuart Goldfarb, would only comment that "the judge was wrong."
"A Danger to Society"
Jeremy was brought into the courtroom shortly after 11 a.m., wearing the orange prison uniform. He looked disheveled and disoriented as he took his seat inside the glass cage for detainees to the left of the bench.
After Jeremy entered his “not guilty” plea and the next date for the trial was decided, the prosecutor — Deputy District Attorney Paul Thompson of the Sex Crimes Division — and Jeremy’s attorney exchanged arguments about the $6.6 million bail that that DA’s office had requested.
Thompson’s rationale for the unusually high bail requested emphasized the number of allegations of what he termed “sexual violence” that have been made about Jeremy, some of them going back 30 years.
Thompson cited 38 allegations to justify his claim that Jeremy’s freedom represents “a risk” and “a danger to society.”
Goldfarb countered that Jeremy, 67, does not represent a risk to society, offering as his argument that “not one of” those 38 allegations, most of which he said only came recently to the attention of the DA after charges were filed Tuesday, had “resulted in a criminal trial” before Tuesday.
Goldfarb then tried to argue that “Mr. [Jeremy]’s profession” is key to understanding some of these situations, as he attends “video shows” where “80, 100, 200 people, mostly women” request to be photographed with him or have body parts autographed.
The 38 incidents mentioned by Thompson, Goldfarb argued, are “an infinitesimal amount in comparison to the number" of people Jeremy has interacted with at adult industry events.
“He’s touching and groping and they’re groping him,” Goldfarb said.
Goldfarb also alleged that “in every case I have looked at there has never been an alleged victim that complained that he has threatened them” or “touched them in a manner of force.”
Jeremy’s lawyer also claimed that at the West Hollywood bar where some of the charges took place, the Rainbow Bar & Grill, “there’s a public bathroom and a private bathroom, for employees and celebrities” and “for the last 20 years, it is known you can go back there [to the private bathroom] and have sex.”
Goldfarb claimed Jeremy has been “physically and mentally deteriorating for the last year,” showing a decline in “seeing, hearing and memory,” and signs of “beginning of dementia.”
Goldfarb also attempted to plea for a bail reduction by referring to the current California initiative to reform the bail system, arguing that if “the new law” and “the new system” were in place, the judge would have more discretion to grant Jeremy his freedom while awaiting trial.
"Violent Sexual Contact"
Thompson spoke then, giving further details about the “38 allegations of sexual violence” that according to his office proved that Jeremy was “a danger to society.”
The prosecutor said that before Tuesday there had been 13 reports about Jeremy, and of those, originally five were developed into cases, with four being filed as charges on Tuesday. Thompson said that since Tuesday, after “news of the filings” have been publicized, the DA received 25 additional complaints, though only 13 turned out to be under their jurisdiction.
“But there might be new charges,” Thompson suggested, asking for the $6.6 million bail to be confirmed by the judge.
Thompson also dismissed Goldfarb’s picture of Jeremy as nonviolent. “Many of the accusations are misdemeanor sexual battery,” he said, referring to non-consensual touching or groping, “but there a large number of accusations of violent sexual contact.”
Thompson then illustrated that point with the accounts of Jane Doe Nos. 2, 3 and 4 that are part of the filed charges, mentioning that Jeremy had “blocked” the bathroom door and prevented them from leaving. He also revealed that after the incident involving Jane Doe 3, “she was given [an exam] that night.”
Goldfarb had a chance to respond, but the judge was ultimately unconvinced and bail was set at $6.6 million before the case was continued until the end of August.
“Mr [Jeremy], take care of yourself,” said Judge Espinosa to a non-responsive Jeremy behind the glass. “See you then.”
The Case Against Ron Jeremy
The Los Angeles District Attorney’s office is accusing Jeremy of eight counts of sexual assault: "forcible oral copulation" and "forcible rape" (two separate charges) on or about May 21, 2014 against a Jane Doe No. 1; "forcible rape" and "sexual battery by restraint" (two separate charges) on or about March 11, 2017 against a Jane Doe No. 2; two charges of "sexual penetration by use of force" and one of "sexual penetration by intoxicating substance" (three separate charges) on September 10, 2017 against a Jane Doe No. 3; and one charge of "forcible rape" on July 15, 2019 against a Jane Doe No. 4.
The 2014 incident reportedly took place in “a West Hollywood home.” Both the 2017 incidents and the 2019 incident are all alleged to have taken place “at a West Hollywood bar,” which some sources have claimed is one of Jeremy’s usual haunts, the Rainbow Bar & Grill on the Sunset Strip. Jeremy’s attorney Stuart Goldfarb confirmed on Wednesday that the location of the 2019 allegation is indeed the Rainbow Bar & Grill.
All of the charges stem from investigations by the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department, which has jurisdiction over West Hollywood.
The Sheriff Department’s press release announcing Jeremy’s arrest stated that “on June 22, 2020 [Monday], detectives presented the case to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
The DA office’s Public Information Officer, Greg Risling, however told XBIZ on Wednesday that that date is “not accurate.” The cases, according to Risling, “were presented [to the DA's office] at different times.”
Jeremy is only the third man to be charged after being subject of a probe by the Entertainment Industry Sex Crimes Task Force. That task force was formed by Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey in 2017 to investigate sexual misconduct allegations in the entertainment industry, after receiving criticism concerning her office’s handling of the Harvey Weinstein allegations.
Although at some point news sources referred to at least 40 investigations being handled by the task force, from 2017 until last week, Lacey’s task force had only pursued charges against one defendant — Harvey Weinstein.
The Weinstein charges were announced by Lacey on January 6, 2020, in a press conference that coincided with renewed public appearances for her current re-election campaign.
This past Monday, a second case connected to a Task Force investigation, that of mainstream producer and agent David Guillod, was filed by the Santa Barbara District Attorney.
“That was presented to us,” Risling told XBIZ, “but was ultimately pursued by the Santa Barbara DA. But it was technically Case No. 2,” connected to Lacey’s task force.
The Ron Jeremy case is only the third Entertainment Industry Sex Crimes Task Force case that has resulted in charges since 2017, and the second filed this week.
Main Image: The Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center and Ron Jeremy on Wednesday, during his first arraignment hearing.
