Armie Hammer will not be facing a sexual assault charge in Los Angeles County.
After two years of investigation, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office has decided not to file and prosecute charges against the actor. Hammer was accused of rape by a former partner, identified as Effie, in February 2021. She claimed that Hammer was physically abusive during their four-year-long, on-and-off relationship and that Hammer raped her in 2017.
In a statement (via Variety), the Los Angeles D.A.’s office said it could not prove rape allegations beyond a reasonable doubt due to the “complexity of the relationship” between Hammer and accuser Effie. Hammer has denied the allegations.
“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,” the D.A.’s office said. “As prosecutors, we have an ethical responsibility to only charge cases that we can prove beyond a reasonable doubt…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.”
Hammer has not worked in Hollywood since the allegations were made public. The “Social Network” actor was dropped from upcoming films, including Taika Waititi’s “Next Goal Wins,” while rumors of alleged sexual acts surrounding cannibalism and BDSM swirled. He was dropped by his agency, WME, in 2021. In addition to Effie, multiple other women have accused Hammer of abuse.
Hammer gave his first interview addressing the allegations in February 2023, opening up about his own childhood sexual abuse and apologizing for past behavior in relationships.
“I’m here to own my mistakes, take accountability for the fact that I was an asshole, that I was selfish, that I used people to make me feel better, and when I was done, moved on. And treated people more poorly than they should have been treated,” Hammer told Air Mail. “I would have these younger women in their mid-20s, and I’m in my 30s. I was a successful actor at the time. They could have been happy to just be with me and would have said yes to things that maybe they wouldn’t have said yes to on their own. That’s an imbalance of power in the situation.”
