All posts tagged: allegations

Complaint letter sent to California city after allegations surfaced that chaplains were banned from praying ‘in Jesus’ Name’ – OpentheWord.org

Complaint letter sent to California city after allegations surfaced that chaplains were banned from praying ‘in Jesus’ Name’ – OpentheWord.org

Downtown Carlsbad, CaliforniaCredit: Buchanan-Hermit, Wikipedia, Creative Commons First Liberty Institute (FLI) has sent a letter to Carlsbad City Council alleging the city’s manager, Scott Chadwick, had ordered two volunteer chaplains to stop closing their prayers with the commonly cited Christian phrase “in Jesus’ name,” the Christian Post (CP) reports. Located along California’s coastline, the popular tourist destination has a population of 115,000. It’s alleged that Chadwick had told the two chaplains, J.C. Cooper (police) and Denny Cooper (fire), that the phrase not only created a ‘hostile work environment’, but was considered to be harassment of non-Christians. In her complaint letter, Re: Censorship of Chaplain Prayers, FLI Counsel Kayla Toney stated: “Because the chaplains cannot in good conscience erase the name of Jesus from their prayers, this order deprives first responders of the solace and spiritual strength that the Chaplains’ volunteer ministry has provided for nearly two decades.” Toney added, ironically, that the city manager has in fact created a hostile work environment for Christians while claiming to be stopping it. In an interview with CP, Toney …

Nick Carter Claims Sexual Battery Accuser’s Allegations Are a ‘Factual Impossibility’

Nick Carter Claims Sexual Battery Accuser’s Allegations Are a ‘Factual Impossibility’

Nick Carter claims it is a “factual impossibility” that he raped Shannon Ruth in 2001 when she was 17, and the Backstreet Boy singer is requesting that the judge make a ruling as such. According to new court documents obtained by ET, Carter claims that more than a year after Ruth filed her sexual abuse lawsuit against him he’s now “obtained all of the evidence necessary to prove that he has been telling the truth all along,” which is that “he did not rape Ruth or anyone else for that matter.” In her lawsuit, Ruth claimed Carter invited her back to his tour bus following a Tacoma, Washington, concert. Ruth, who claimed she was 17 at the time, alleged Carter spiked her drink before sexually assaulting her in the bathroom and then again on his bed. But Carter claims Ruth’s lawsuit has been orchestrated by former Dream singer Melissa Schuman, who in April 2023 also sued him, claiming sexual assault and battery. Carter claims Ruth and Schuman’s lawsuits are part of a coordinated effort “to garner …

Baby Reindeer’s Real-Life Martha Speaks Out: Richard Gadd Is “Obsessed With Me”

Baby Reindeer’s Real-Life Martha Speaks Out: Richard Gadd Is “Obsessed With Me”

Less than a month after the debut of Netflix’s Baby Reindeer, which centers on creator and star Richard Gadd’s alleged experiences with an actual stalker, the woman who allegedly inspired the character of Martha has revealed herself—and denied that Gadd’s portrayal of her is accurate. Fiona Harvey, a 58-year-old Scottish woman who has previously been accused of stalking, has now claimed that Gadd is “obsessed” with her. Speaking with Piers Morgan on Thursday’s episode of his YouTube show, Harvey said she was forced to go public after the show premiered on April 11. “The internet sleuths tracked me down and hounded me and gave me death threats,” she said. “So it wasn’t really a choice.” VF has reached out to reps for Netflix and Gadd for comment. Harvey, who said she had not watched any of the seven-episode series, referred to it as “obscene,” “horrifying,” and “misogynistic” in its depiction of Martha, a character played by actor Jessica Gunning. After first revealing her identity in an interview with the Daily Record, Harvey offered further details …

Kevin Spacey’s Deep History of Alleged Sexual Assault Is Exposed in New Documentary

Kevin Spacey’s Deep History of Alleged Sexual Assault Is Exposed in New Documentary

A new wave of sexual assault accusations against Kevin Spacey has arrived in the form of Spacey Unmasked, a documentary in which 10 men speak publicly about alleged abuse they faced at the hands of the actor. The two-part doc, debuting Monday on Investigation Discovery and streaming on Max following an earlier premiere on the UK’s Channel 4, features revelations from men who were not involved in the London sexual assault trial that saw Spacey acquitted of nine charges last summer. (Spacey pleaded not guilty in the criminal case.) Allegations from men in the documentary, one of whom reportedly refers to the actor as a “soulless monster,” span from Spacey’s high school days to his time on Netflix’s House of Cards, according to the Los Angeles Times. The doc paints a portrait of Spacey as a serial abuser, one who allegedly dangled career advancement and, according to one interview subject, masturbated to a brutal war scene in Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan. Directed and produced by Katherine Haywood, Unmasked traces the origins of Spacey’s alleged …

Drake Denies Pedophile Allegations In New Kendrick Lamar Diss Track

Drake Denies Pedophile Allegations In New Kendrick Lamar Diss Track

The Drake–Kendrick Lamar feud continues to escalate after the Canadian rapper released “The Heart Part 6,” a new diss track on Sunday night that pushed back against some of the sexual predator allegations made by Lamar in a series of songs released over the last week. The biggest rap feud in years has increasingly become vitriolic and personal, and has seen both Drake and Lamar throw unsubstantiated allegations at each other. Among them, Drake has accused Lamar of physically abusing his partner, and Lamar suggested Drake has a hidden love child. In his last few tracks, Lamar has focused on allegations that Drake is a sexual predator, and in the song “Meet the Grahams,” which was released May 3, he directly accuses Drake of harboring “sex offenders” at his label OVO and even calls his rival a “pervert” for his alleged interest in younger women. He also raps that “we gotta raise our daughters knowin’ there’s predators like him lurkin’.” In “Meet the Grahams,” Lamar also raps that “The Embassy ’bout to get raided too, …

Kevin Spacey hits back at fresh allegations in new Channel 4 documentary | Kevin Spacey

Kevin Spacey hits back at fresh allegations in new Channel 4 documentary | Kevin Spacey

One of the producers of a Channel 4 documentary that contains fresh claims that Kevin Spacey “behaved inappropriately” with men says it will be broadcast as planned on Monday, despite public denials from the actor this weekend. Dorothy Byrne, a former head of news and current affairs at the television channel, told the Observer that she hopes the new two-part programme, Spacey Unmasked, will prompt “a #MeToo moment for men” and start a wider discussion about standards of behaviour in working situations. “We’re going ahead,” said Byrne. “I’ve made a lot of programmes over decades about women suffering inappropriate behaviour, so this has been a very interesting project to work on. I do feel that it’s a #MeToo moment for men. Lots of things that were done to women 50 years ago are still being done to men, many of whom feel that  they have to put up with it. Employees now know to look out for this kind of behaviour, but they tend to assume it’s going to be a woman at risk.” The documentary …

Afghanistan’s only female diplomat resigns amid smuggling allegations

Afghanistan’s only female diplomat resigns amid smuggling allegations

ISLAMABAD —  An Afghan diplomat in India, who was appointed before the Taliban seized power in 2021 and said she was the only woman in the country’s diplomatic service, has resigned after reports emerged of her being detained for allegedly smuggling gold. Zakia Wardak, the Afghan consul-general for Mumbai, announced her resignation on her official account on the social media platform X on Saturday after Indian media reported last week that she was briefly detained at the city’s airport on allegations of smuggling 25 bricks of gold, each weighing 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds), from Dubai. According to Indian media reports, she has not been arrested because of her diplomatic immunity. In a statement, Wardak made no mention of her reported detention or gold smuggling allegations but said, “I am deeply sorry that as the only woman present in Afghanistan’s diplomatic apparatus, instead of receiving constructive support to maintain this position, I faced waves of organized attacks aimed at destroying me.” “Over the past year, I have encountered numerous personal attacks and defamation not only directed …

Kevin Spacey denies new allegations of inappropriate behavior to be aired on U.K. television next week

Kevin Spacey denies new allegations of inappropriate behavior to be aired on U.K. television next week

LONDON — Kevin Spacey, the Oscar-winning actor, has denied new allegations of inappropriate behavior from men who will feature in a documentary on British television that is due to be released next week. In an online interview with journalist Dan Wootton, Spacey said he has never done anything illegal and admitted that he has struggled to get back to work after being acquitted last year of criminal charges in a London court. “I can’t go through this again, allowing myself to be baselessly attacked without defending myself,” he said in the interview entitled “Kevin Spacey: Right Of Reply” which was aired late Friday on Wootton’s YouTube channel. Last July, a London jury acquitted Spacey on sexual assault charges stemming from allegations by four men dating back 20 years. The court victory was his second since he saw off a $40 million lawsuit in 2022 in New York brought by “Star Trek: Discovery” actor Anthony Rapp. The documentary “Spacey Unmasked” is set to be aired on May 6 and 7 on Channel 4 in Britain and streamed on Max …

Kevin Spacey denies new allegations of inappropriate behaviour | Ents & Arts News

Kevin Spacey denies new allegations of inappropriate behaviour | Ents & Arts News

Kevin Spacey has denied new allegations of inappropriate behaviour from men who feature in a Channel 4 documentary released next week. In an interview with journalist Dan Wootton posted on X, the double Oscar winner said he will “no longer be speechless”. Last year, Spacey was found not guilty by a jury of nine sexual offences alleged by four men between 2001 and 2013 after a trial in London. He also won a US civil lawsuit in October 2022, after being accused of an unwanted sexual advance at a party in 1986. The Channel 4 documentary titled Spacey Unmasked is said to feature testimony from men “regarding events they say took place between 1976 and 2013, and relate to what they describe as unwanted sexual behaviour” from Spacey, according to an email shown during the interview. ‘I wasn’t in on the deal’ The two-part series, produced by Roast Beef Productions, is set to air on Monday and Tuesday next week. “I take full responsibility for my past behaviour and my actions, but I cannot and …

Kevin Spacey on New Sexual Assault Allegations in ‘Spacey Unmasked’

Kevin Spacey on New Sexual Assault Allegations in ‘Spacey Unmasked’

Kevin Spacey has fired back at new allegations of sexual harassment and assault set to be heard as part of a Channel 4 documentary, Spacey Unmasked, premiering in the U.K. on May 6-7. “I’ve got nothing left to hide,” Spacey told former U.K. broadcaster Dan Wootton during a two hour, 20 minutes interview titled Kevin Spacey: Right of Reply, which streamed on X (formerly Twitter). Having seen off earlier allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior in civil and criminal court cases in the U.S. and the U.K., Spacey said he refused to stand by and stay silent as fresh allegations were made in the Channel 4 documentary. “I can’t go through this again, allowing myself to be basically attacked without defending myself as well,” he told Wootton. While accepting that he may have flirted with or hooked up with fellow actors in the past, Spacey denied that he had ever done anything illegal. “I take full responsibility for my past behavior and my actions, but I cannot and will not take responsibility or apologize to anyone who’s made …