Armie Hammer will not be facing any charges stemming from an allegation of sexual assault from a woman — identified only as Effie — who accused the actor of “violently” raping her in 2017 in the midst of a four-year affair in which she claims he abused her “mentally, emotionally and sexually.”
On Wednesday, CNN reported that the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office had decided not to press charges.
“Sexual assault cases are often difficult to prove, which is why we assign our most experienced prosecutors to review them,” Tiffiny Blacknell, director of the bureau of communications for the L.A. DA’s Office, told CNN.
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“In this case, those prosecutors conducted an extremely thorough review, but determined that at this time, there is insufficient evidence to charge Mr. Hammer with a crime,” Blacknell’s statement continued.
“As prosecutors, we have an ethical responsibility to only charge cases that we can prove beyond a reasonable doubt,” the statement added. “We know that it is hard for women to report sexual assault. Even when we cannot move forward with a prosecution, our victim service representatives will be available to those who seek our victim support services. Due to the complexity of the relationship and inability to prove a non-consensual, forcible sexual encounter we are unable to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.”
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Hammer posted a statement to Instagram following the news.
“I am very grateful to the District Attorney for conducting a thorough investigation and coming to the conclusion that I have stood by this entire time, that no crime was committed,” he wrote. “I look forward to beginning what will be a long, difficult process of putting my life back together now that my name is cleared.”
As CNN noted, the LAPD opened an investigation into the woman’s accusations in February 2021 to determine whether charges were warranted; Hammer denied any wrongdoing, with his attorney dismissing the allegation as “outrageous” and contending the relationship was “completely consensual, discussed and agreed upon in advance, and mutually participatory.”
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Hammer’s accuser responded to the news. “I am disappointed with the LA County District Attorney’s decision not to prosecute Armie Hammer,” said Effie in her statement. “I felt a duty to speak out and file a report in order to try to hold Armie accountable for all the harm and trauma he has caused me and in order to protect other women from experiencing similar abuse.”
