Armie Hammer was charged Thursday with violently assaulting a woman for more than four hours in Los Angeles in 2017, leading her to believe she was “going to kill me.” A lawyer for Hammer denied the allegations.
The charges against the 34-year-old actor, known for his roles in “Call Me By Your Name” and “The Social Network”, came during a video conference held by his accuser, identified only as “Effie” and her lawyer, Gloria Allred.
The woman, who cried throughout her statement, said she met Hammer on Facebook in 2016, when she was 20, and “fell in love with him instantly. The relationship progressed quickly, and emotions on both sides became with really intense “. Hammer was married during the alleged relationship, but he and his wife announced last year that he was seeking a divorce.
Allred said Effie had a romantic and intimate relationship with Hammer between 2016 and 2020. Meanwhile, Effie said Hammer “used manipulation tactics to exercise control over me until I started to get lost.”
“He often tested my devotion to him, removing my laces and crossing my borders, as he became more and more violent,” she added. “He abused me mentally, emotionally and sexually.”
On April 24, 2017, she claimed that Hammer had violently raped her for more than four hours in Los Angeles. She accused him of repeatedly hitting his head on the wall and committing “other acts of violence” to which he disagreed – including allegedly kicking a crop.
“In those four hours, I tried to escape, but he wouldn’t let me,” she said. – I thought he was going to kill me.
Gloria Allred
The accusations come at a difficult time for Hammer, who gave up two major projects earlier this year, after several women claimed on social media that the actor shared violent sexual fantasies with them. Hammer rejected the allegations, which CBS News did not confirm, calling them “bulls ***” in a statement to E! Online.
The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to CBS News that it had launched a sexual assault investigation on Hammer in connection with the assault charges based on a report they received on February 3, 2021, but the department did not confirm that the report was filed by Effie. Allred said Effie gave information to police, but declined to comment on whether Effie had filed a police report at the time of the alleged attack.
A lawyer for Hammer denied the allegations, telling CBS News in a statement that “Mr. Hammer claimed that all his interactions with [Effie] – and all his other sexual partners – were completely consensual, discussed and agreed in advance and participated in each other. “
The lawyer also released a screenshot of what he said was a text conversation between Hammer and Effie, in which Hammer appeared to reject Effie’s graphic request for sex. The lawyer told CBS News that “Effie’s own correspondence with Mr. Hammer undermines and refutes his outrageous accusations.” CBS News has not confirmed the authenticity of the messages.
In response to the lawyer’s comment, Allred asked Hammer to “present all his communications with Effie to the Los Angeles Police Department and answer all their questions, rather than through his attorneys.”
“Even if a partner agrees to some sexual acts, that does not mean that there is consent for any sexual conduct with her. It should also not be construed as consent for sexual abuse or criminal violence against her,” Allred said during Press conference.
Allred said Effie provided evidence to support his law enforcement claims, adding that “it is up to law enforcement and the prosecutor to decide if there is enough evidence to prosecute them.”
“We think it’s important that an investigation into these serious allegations be conducted,” Allred said. “We look forward to hearing whether Mr. Hammer, rather than his representatives, will be willing to help investigators find the truth.”