https://x.com/Baxter/status/1826392608597569780
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A civil lawsuit against former NBA star Dwight Howard alleging sexual assault
and battery has been dismissed, according to a court filing obtained by ESPN.
The dismissal came Monday in Gwinnett County Court in Georgia and was filed
by Stephen Harper, who initially filed the lawsuit against Howard in July
2023.
In Monday's filing, Harper dismissed all the claims he had asserted against
Howard with prejudice, meaning he cannot refile a lawsuit on those claims.
Justin Bailey, one of Howard's attorneys, told ESPN that no money was paid to
Harper in exchange for him dropping the suit against Howard.
Harper's attorneys didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
根據ESPN得到的文件表示，一項針對前NBA球星Dwight Howard的性侵與襲擊的訴訟已經被
撤銷。
根據ESPN獲得的法庭文件顯示，這宗案件在喬治亞州Gwinnett縣法院於周一被駁回，並由
原告Stephen Harper提出撤回。
在周一的文件中，Harper撤回了對Howard提出的所有指控，並且這些指控已經被駁回，意
味著Harper不能就這些指控再次提出訴訟。
Harper的律師尚未回應評論請求。
The lawsuit stemmed from a July 2021 encounter at Howard's Georgia residence,
where Harper accused Howard of sexually assaulting him. Harper's July 2023
complaint also accused Howard of "intentional infliction of emotional
distress" and false imprisonment.
Howard denied those allegations and said in an October filing that he and
Harper engaged in "consensual sexual activity."
Howard subsequently argued in a December filing that the accusations against
him were baseless and asked the court to immediately rule in his favor and
dismiss the lawsuit without a trial. A judge denied that request in February.
這宗訴訟源於2021年7月Howard位於喬治亞州的住所發生的事件。Harper指控Howard性侵他
。Harper於2023年7月提出的訴狀還指控Howard"故意造成情感傷害"和虛假拘禁。
Howard否認這些指控，並在10月的文件中表示，他和Harper進行的是"合意的性行為"。
Howard隨後在12月的文件中辯稱，對他的指控毫無根據，並要求法院立即做出有利於他的
裁決，並在沒有審判的情況下駁回訴訟。法官在2月拒絕了這一要求。
In the original complaint, Harper's lawyers said he and Howard first began
corresponding over direct messages on Instagram in May 2021, with Harper
initiating the exchange. Harper's complaint showed screenshots of the alleged
Instagram exchanges between Harper and Howard, along with an Uber receipt for
Harper's trip to Howard's residence on the night of the encounter.
Harper went to police a year later, according to a July 2022 incident report
from the Gwinnett County Police Department, which was obtained by ESPN. No
charges were filed.
"This is nothing more than a classic case of unrequited love," Howard's
lawyers wrote in the December filing obtained by ESPN. "After one consensual
evening together, Mr. Howard was no longer interested in keeping Mr. Harper's
company."
根據原始訴狀，Harper的律師表示，他和Howard於2021年5月開始在Instagram上進行直接
訊息交流，並由Harper發起了這次交流。Harper的訴狀展示了他和Howard之間的Instagram
聊天截圖，以及Harper在當晚前往Howard住所的Uber收據。
Harper在一年後報警，根據ESPN獲得的2022年7月Gwinnett縣警察局事件報告，並未提出指
控。
Howard的律師在12月的文件中寫道:"這不過是一個典型的單戀案例。Howard在一晚自願共
度時光後，對Harper不再感興趣。"
Harper's lawyers wrote in a January response that the suit had "nothing to do
with unrequited love" and asked the judge to see past Howard's efforts "to
escape the consequences of his actions" and allow Harper to prove his claims
to a jury.
Howard, 38, last played in the NBA in 2021-22 with the Los Angeles Lakers. He
is an eight-time All-Star and a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
Harper的律師在1月的回應中寫道，該訴訟"與單戀無關"，並要求法官看穿Howard"逃避自
己行為後果"的努力，讓Harper能夠向陪審團證明他的指控。
Howard，38歲，最後一次在NBA打球是2021-22賽季與洛杉磯湖人隊一同打球。他是一名八
次全明星球員和三次NBA最佳防守球員。
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