Manhattan DA Won't File Criminal Charges Against Anchor Greg Kelly
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Two weeks after being accused of rape, news anchor Greg Kelly had his name cleared Tuesday night.
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. will not file criminal charges against Kelly, Vance's spokeswoman said in a statement, adding the facts do not fit the definition of sexual assault crimes.
Kelly, the co-host of "Good Day New York" on Fox 5, made headlines last month after a woman accused him of rape. The woman said she met Kelly on the street and the two had drinks by the South Street Seaport before going to her law office building where she said Kelly forced himself on her last Fall.
The tryst allegedly took place in the woman's law firm to keep it from her live-in boyfriend.
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Vance's spokeswoman, Joan Vollero, said the DA's office sent a letter to Kelly's lawyer, attorney Andrew Lankler, notifying him that the office would not file charges against his client.
"From the moment this matter was referred to this Office, we conducted a thorough investigation, consistent with standard practice. That investigation included interviewing numerous fact and expert witnesses, and reviewing and analyzing multiple items of physical evidence, including, but not limited to, receipts, security logs, text messages, and telephone records. After reviewing all the evidence, we have concluded that the established facts do not constitute a crime under New York criminal law," Vollero said in a statement.
Kelly had taken a leave from his position at Fox following the allegations. He also released a statement on Tuesday night, saying that he was "innocent of the allegations that were waged against me."
"I am so blessed to have a wonderful family and friends whose support for me never wavered," the statement read. "I am grateful to everyone at Fox 5, especially Rosanna Scotto, my co-host. I will always remember her kindness, and I look forward to soon resuming my post on Good Day New York next to her."
Kelly is the son New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
Sources close to the investigation said the woman and her sister went to the 13th Precinct last month to file a complaint and when detectives realized the potential for a conflict of interest, they immediately turned the case over to District Attorney Vance.
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In the letter sent to Greg Kelly's lawyer from the district attorney's office, Sex Crimes Unit chief Martha Bashford said Greg Kelly and his accuser were "cooperative and were interviewed in the first days of the investigation."
Defense attorney Stuart Slotnick wasn't involved in the case, but followed it closely and said it was flawed from the beginning. Those flaws, Slotnick said, include the woman taking three months to go to the police to report the alleged rape, and the text messages with Greg Kelly that followed the sexual liaison.
"I think the District Attorney's office believed this was a consensual encounter," he told CBS 2's Sean Hennessey.
Prosecutors have decided not to charge the woman with filing a false police report, ensuring the headlines from this case will soon fade away.
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