Elmo Accuser Dismisses Sex Abuse Charges Voluntarily, Without Settlement
One of four accusers who have filed underage sex claims against Kevin Clash, the former voice of Elmo, has voluntarily dropped the charges.
One accuser in the Clash sex scandal, referred to as D.O., moved to dismiss charges against the former Sesame Street puppeteer on Monday in New York. The dismissed charges were voluntary and not the result of a plea bargain Clash's attorney, Michael G. Berger, told The Wrap.
In court papers obtained by The Wrap, the accuser, 29, alleged that he began having sex with the Elmo puppeteer in 2009.
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Berger filed a motion last month to dismiss the claims brought by D.O., as well as plaintiffs identified as Cecil Singleton and S.M., claiming that any alleged sexual contact would fall outside the statute of limitations.
Sheldon Stephens, the original accuser, filed a lawsuit against Clash last year stating that the puppeteer initiated sex with him when he was 16 years old.
"I was taken advantage of by someone a lot older, and manipulated," Stephens, who's now 24, said in a March press conference. Stephens also alleged that Clash used crystal meth and "poppers" before engaging in sexual contact.
Stephens stated that he filed the lawsuit after watching Sesame Street with his nieces, according to USA Today.
"When I started to realize my nieces were idolizing this character, it just disgusted me inside because I knew what had happened to me," he explained.
Clash, who resigned from his position with Sesame Street in November after a second accuser came forward, has not admitted any guilt, and defends that the relationship was consensual.
"The plaintiff has already admitted in writing that he had 'an adult consensual relationship' with Mr. Clash," Berger said in a statement, according to the Associated Press. "Mr. Clash continues to deny any wrongdoing, and we intend to defend this case forcefully."
