Model Who Accused Bruce Weber of Sexual Assault Sent Him Racy Photos, Court Documents Show; Undermines His Allegations
Bruce Weber, who may be the most renowned fashion photographer in the world, has been fighting against an onslaught of sexual misconduct allegations.
Last year, Jason Boyce, one of Weber's original accusers, filed a lawsuit against the 72-year-old photographer accusing him of sexual misconduct during a 2014 photo shoot.
Now the New York Times is reporting that Weber is asking the lawsuit be dismissed, claiming it's nothing more than “a money grab by a failed model.”
The request included several x-rated photos and suggestive texts sent by Boyce both before and after the 2014 photo shoot that led to the lawsuit, claiming they are evidence the interactions before-and-after the alleged incident did not take place the way they were described by Boyce in the complaint.
Jayne Weintraub, a lawyer for Mr. Weber, called the new allegations against him “outrageous.”
She wrote in an email: “Bruce Weber has never lured, recruited, or forced anyone to do anything and has never inappropriately touched a model. This lawsuit is nothing more than a media-hungry lawyer's attempt to extort Mr. Weber with false, fictitious and legally frivolous claims. We are confident that Mr. Weber will prevail against these false allegations; not just with words, but with evidence in a court of law.”
In the suit, Boyce alleged Weber touched his genitals, stuck his fingers in his mouth, and forcibly kissed him against his will.
At the time, The Los Angeles Times reported: “The complaint alleges that Weber grabbed Boyce and kissed him on the lips. It also states, “Weber put his fingers in Mr. Boyce's mouth. Shocked, Mr. Boyce opened his eyes. Mr. Weber told him to keep his eyes closed, and kept his fingers in Mr. Boyce's mouth. ‘If you just had confidence, you'd go really far,' Mr. Weber whispered. ‘How far do you want to make it? How ambitious are you?' Mr. Boyce did not respond.”
The Daily Mail reports that Weintraub responded to those claims in a scathing Memorandum of Law in Opposition.
“It has been over a year since Plaintiff, an unsuccessful 32-year old male model, filed his complaint containing false and salacious allegations that Mr. Weber, an internationally acclaimed fashion photographer, inappropriately touched him during a brief photo shoot in 2014,' begins the filing.
Since then, Plaintiff has refused to provide required discovery and failed to identify any evidence to support his claims, because his claims are false. Nonetheless, now, almost one year later, Plaintiff is “doubling down” on his false claims' charade, by seeking leave to amend and assert a claim against Mr. Weber under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015.”
