Dershowitz, who Giuffre had accused of assaulting and trafficking her, released a statement maintaining his innocence–and commending Giuffre for her courage, saying he believes that she had genuinely misidentified him.
Virginia Giuffre, among the first women to accuse the late billionaire Jeffrey Epstein of sexual abuse, has dropped her human trafficking lawsuit against attorney Alan Dershowitz.
According to NBC News, Giuffre filed her complaint against Dershowitz in 2019, alleging that the attorney sexually assaulted her.
The lawsuit broadly asserted that Dershowitz was “also a participant in sex trafficking, including as one of the men to whom Epstein lent out Plaintiff for sex.”
Dershowitz, writes NBC News, denied the claim and counter-sued Giuffre for defamation.
However, Giuffre has since dropped the lawsuit, saying that she may have made a mistake and misidentified Dershowitz as one of her abusers.
“I have long believed that I was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein to Alan Dershowitz,” Giuffre said in a statement.
“However, I was very young at the time, it was a very stressful and traumatic environment, and Mr. Dershowitz has from the beginning consistently denied these allegations,” she said. “I now recognize I may have made a mistake in identifying Mr. Dershowitz. This litigation has been very stressful and burdensome for me and my family, and we believe it is time to bring it to an end and move on with our lives.”
Dershowitz, notes NBC News, also agreed to drop his lawsuit against Giuffre.
In a statement, the attorney both emphasized his innocence and commended Giuffre for taking a stand against her abusers.
“As I have said from the beginning, I never had sex with Ms. Giuffre,” Dershowitz said. “I have nevertheless come to believe that at the time she accused me she believed what she said. Ms. Giuffre is to be commended for her courage in now stating publicly that she may have been mistaken about me.”
Dershowitz had earlier suggested that David Boies, the lawyer who represented Giuffre, was attempting to extort him—a claim that also led to Boies filing his own defamation lawsuit.
“I agree with Mr. Dershowitz and Ms. Giuffre that the time has come to end this litigation and move on,” Boies said. “I know that Alan Dershowitz has suffered greatly from the allegation of sexual abuse — an allegation that he has consistently, and vehemently, denied.”
Dershowitz and Boeies have also agreed to drop their claims against one another.
In his own statement, Boies said that he “appreciated” that Dershowitz has retracted his allegations.
“I appreciate Mr. Dershowitz’s recognition that I was not engaged in an extortion plot or in suborning perjury,” he said.
All of the parties—including Dershowitz, Giuffre, and Boies—released a joint statement that the resolution does not involve the payment of money “by anyone or anything else.”
Sources
Epstein victim drops her lawsuit against lawyer Alan Dershowitz
Jeffrey Epstein accuser drops lawsuit against Alan Dershowitz: “I may have made a mistake”
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