LONDON (Reuters) – Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey appeared in a London court on Wednesday at the start of his trial on a dozen sex offence charges. Here are some facts about the case.
HOW LONG IS THE TRIAL DUE TO LAST?
The trial is due to last about four weeks, with the prosecution set to formally open its case against him on Friday.
WHAT ARE THE CHARGES AGAINST HIM?
The charges against Spacey include repeated incidents of indecent and sexual assaults, and a more serious offence of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.
British prosecutors first revealed that he faced charges in May 2022, saying he was accused of five assaults between March 2005 and April 2013: four in London and one in Gloucestershire in the west of England. They involved one man who is now in his 40s and two men now in their 30s.
Last November the Crown Prosecution Service authorised a further seven charges involving sex assaults on one man between 2001 and 2004.
HOW HAS SPACEY RESPONDED TO THE CHARGES?
He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
WHAT SENTENCE DO THE CHARGES CARRY?
If found guilty, Spacey could face time in jail. The most serious charge faced by Spacey, of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent, carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment.
(Reporting by Kylie MacLellan; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
