• dill@lemmy.one
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    18
    ·
    1 year ago

    What’s the public sentiment on this verdict going to be? I have not been following the case.

    • ikidd@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      36
      arrow-down
      28
      ·
      edit-2
      1 year ago

      I think he was found not guilty. Anyone that continues to demonize him should probably step up with more information than came out at the trial before they open their mouths again and ruin a man’s career.

      I’m not sure where the first witch hunt came from, but I’d lay it at the feet of social media platforms like Reddit causing an echo chamber that drove it.

      The fact that he was abandoned by the studios and the people he worked with said more about them than it does about him.

      • MushuChupacabra@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        54
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        A verdict in a court of law is based on what is presented, not on what happened. This is what makes it possible for people to commit a crime, and get away with it (or get framed for something that they didn’t do).

        This is a question that I do not want you to answer here, but one to ponder:

        If your son/nephew/younger was up for a part in a project that was directed by, and starring Kevin Spacey? What weight would you assign to that Not Guilty due to insufficient evidence verdict?

        • vinzen@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          3
          arrow-down
          8
          ·
          1 year ago

          Where does the judge say that evidence was insufficient for a verdict? I missed that part.

          Also, are we going to start questioning every verdict as if any accusation was true, even when proved differently in court?

          • MushuChupacabra@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            10
            ·
            1 year ago

            “Where does the judge say that evidence was insufficient for a verdict? I missed that part.”

            The primary cause of your confusion is your insistence on missing the point.

            “Also, are we going to start questioning every verdict as if any accusation was true, even when proved differently in court?”

            Again, missing the point. Who is talking about every verdict, besides yourself? This is Kevin Spacey specific.

            Do you believe that not getting convicted means that the accused did not do the thing that they are accused of?

            Is it your personal belief that Kevin Spacey is completely harmless with respect to sexual predation? Does your confidence extend far enough that you would have no qualms about a young male relative of yours work on a movie with Kevin Spacey?

            • vinzen@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              6
              ·
              1 year ago

              Reading you comment I searched for the differences between being “not guilty” and being “innocent” and boy I didn’t know enough about the US justice system. I thought a “not guilty” verdict was the same as “the guy didn’t do it”. I stand corrected, though. Thanks for your input.

              • Syndic@feddit.de
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                5
                ·
                edit-2
                1 year ago

                I’m not sure where you’re from. But that principle by no means is limited to the US but pretty much present in every western country.

                The whole idea is to prevent false convictions at the cost of guilty people walking free if their guilt can’t be proven.

      • Taleya@aussie.zone
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        44
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        Calling it a social media witchunt is a bit trite. A number of people came forward, detailing a history that spanned years. His claims that they were motivated ‘by money’ and painting it as ‘aspiring actors’ when we’re talking a group that includes professionals with their own VERY well established careers also reeks of the rear end of the equine.

        • Kichae@kbin.social
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          37
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          1 year ago

          Yeah, let’s not confuse “not guilty” with “not a creepy old man”. The bar for the state taking away your rights based on your activity is fairly high – as it should be – but not being able to produce sufficient evidence of acts that don’t leave a whole lot of physical evidence behind doesn’t make the accusations false.

          It just makes them not enough.

          And, I’m sorry to everyone out there who seem weirdly motivated to want to believe that accusers are overwhelmingly liars, but his hand-waving away of the accusations was not confidence inspiring.

          • VivaceMoss@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            22
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            1 year ago

            Let’s not forget that multiple accusers up and fucking died while waiting for their day in court, also.

            Kinda hard to provide testimony that could have been compelling for the court when a number of key witnesses don’t survive the trial.

            • Taleya@aussie.zone
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              2
              ·
              1 year ago

              Multiple sources i’ve read indicate that Spacey seems to believe he can climb right back on top of the A-list again now this court case is over.

      • boredtortoise@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        5
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        edit-2
        1 year ago

        It was around the qanon situation

        And after Weinstein

        Edit: just read the harassment stuff on Wikipedia.

        I’m not sure if this trial tells anything about the whole truth with all that going on

      • monobot@lemmy.ml
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        12
        arrow-down
        16
        ·
        1 year ago

        Even the career is not important, whole life is ruined. Just imagine family and friends all ar least asking about it and some leaving you.

        While I agree there should be severe and swift punishment for sexual offences, there should be some punishment for false accusations. I know that sometimes is just not prooved and sometimes it is in legally gray area, so not automatic, but if it can be prooven that someone was intentional lying - then there should be consequences.

        • echo64@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          9
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          1 year ago

          but if it can be prooven that someone was intentional lying - then there should be consequences.

          this is already the case today. thank you for playing.

        • jackfrost@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          5
          ·
          1 year ago

          While I agree there should be severe and swift punishment for sexual offences, there should be some punishment for false accusations. I know that sometimes is just not prooved and sometimes it is in legally gray area, so not automatic, but if it can be prooven that someone was intentional lying - then there should be consequences.

          But we actually have pretty clearly defined legal systems for slander, libel and defamation?

        • shalafi@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          5
          ·
          edit-2
          1 year ago

          Unfortunately, in most cases, there’s no real-world way to punish false accusation. The bar of proof for that sort of thing is, and should be, extraordinarily high. You pretty much have to have a confession.

          Also, charging false accusers has a chilling effect on victims. Think how manipulative abusers are. “See what happened to that chick on the news? Go ahead, call the cops. You got nothin’ you dumb bitch, 'cept maybe a future in a concrete and steel cage. Here’s the phone, I’ll dial for you.”

        • Syndic@feddit.de
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          1 year ago

          While I agree there should be severe and swift punishment for sexual offences, there should be some punishment for false accusations.

          What are you talking about? There are punishment for false accusations. But that of course has the very same legal requirements of proven beyong reasonable doubt as any other accusation.

          And no, just because someone is not proven guilty doesn’t mean that the accusation is false. It literally just means that, the court couldn’t prove the accusation and so couldn’t punish the accused.