Don Lemon's Sexual Assault Accuser Drops Lawsuit, Backtracks On Version Of Events After Taking 'Deep Dive' Into Memory
May 3 2022, Published 12:51 p.m. ET
The man that accused Don Lemon of assaulting him in a New York bar three years ago has dropped his lawsuit against the CNN host, announcing he's backtracking on his allegations after taking a "deep dive into my memory."
As RadarOnline.com reported, Dustin Hice sued Lemon in August 2019 for an alleged 2018 incident, in which he claimed, "[Lemon] put his hand down the front of his own shorts, and vigorously rubbed his genitalia, removed his hand and shoved his index and middle fingers into Plaintiff's mustache and under Plaintiff's nose."
Fast-forward to Monday when Hice retreated on his accusations.
His attorney, Robert Barnes, released a statement announcing the news.
“After a lot of inner reflection and a deep dive into my memory, I have come to realize that my recollection of the events that occurred on the night in question when I first met CNN anchor Don Lemon were not what I thought they were when I filed this lawsuit,” Hice's statement read.
“As a result, I am dropping the case," he concluded.
Hice's bizarre flip-flop came just weeks after the judge ordered him to pay Lemon $77,000 in sanctions. The CNN host accused Hice of concealing evidence and attempting to bribe witnesses.
Following Hice's decision, the network's lawyer Caroline Polisi fired off her own statement.
"Thankfully Mr. Hice was finally able to access his memory and recollect the correct version of events on the night when he approached Don Lemon. This has been a long and difficult journey for Don. Out of respect for the judicial process and my advice, he has had to remain silent in the face of a malicious and vulgar attack on his character," she said. "Unfortunately, being a gay Black man in the media, he has had to deal with these sorts of attacks for quite some time."
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Calling Hice's case a "crass money grab," Polisi continued, "Mr. Lemon has never paid the plaintiff a dime over the course of this unfortunate spectacle, and he is looking forward to moving on with his life."
Concluding her scathing statement, Polisi added, "I hope that many in the media have learned their lesson on misreporting the facts and jumping to conclusions. The reporting on this story from many outlets has been a case study in unethical and uninformed reporting."
