Prince Accused of Calif. Sex Assault Escapes Felony Charge

Could still be hit with a misdemeanor
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 20, 2015 12:51 PM CDT
Prince Accused of Calif. Sex Assault Escapes Felony Charge
A street in Beverly Hills.   (Shutterstock)

The Saudi prince accused of sexual assault at the Beverly Hills compound he was renting last month will not be charged with a crime, at least not by Los Angeles County prosecutors. A female worker says Majed Abdulaziz Al-Saud, 29, tried to force her to perform oral sex on him, but prosecutors say there wasn't enough evidence for a felony charge, the Los Angeles Times reports. They've referred the case to the LA city attorney's office, which could file misdemeanor charges. Police alleged there were other victims, and three women ultimately sued Al-Saud—who insists he's innocent—in civil court.

The women remained anonymous, but the BBC says all three worked as "servants" in the compound. Their suit says Al-Saud's assaults against the women went on for days, and that his "extreme," "outrageous," and "despicable" behavior ultimately resulted in his arrest. "Generally, if someone doesn't do something wrong, they don't get arrested," says their attorney, who added, per UPI, that the suit will proceed despite the lack of felony charges. "Just the simple human aspect of it, he could've apologized … for doing what he did." The suit seeks unspecified damages. Al-Saud's attorney says the whole thing is "some kind of shakedown for money." (More sex assault stories.)

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