Jonathan Majors appeared in court on Tuesday in a status conference in connection with assault and harassment charges.
The actor appeared virtually as the DA introduced new details in the complaint, which the actor’s attorney says came after she provided prosecutors “irrefutable evidence” that Jonathan is innocent.
via THR:
The Marvel actor was arrested on March 25 in New York after police responded to a 911 call in Chelsea. Police said a 30-year-old woman alleged she had been assaulted by the actor and had sustained minor injuries to her head and neck. Priya Chaudhry, Majors’ criminal defense lawyer, has denied any wrongdoing on the part of her client and says he was the one who called 911 because he was concerned about the woman’s “mental health.”
The actor, who was released from police custody later in the day on March 25, faces misdemeanor charges of assault and aggravated harassment.
Since the alleged incident, a judge granted a full temporary order of protection for the woman involved in the case. The order was requested by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office and granted with the consent of defense counsel.
At a Tuesday appearance on the case in New York Criminal Court, Judge Rachel S. Pauley informed Majors he must continue to abide by the full stay away order for protection, which includes no contact with the individual. At the time of the original order for protection, Chaudhry said the judge’s move was “standard in cases such as this, and we consented because Mr. Majors wants nothing to do with the woman who assaulted him.”
Majors appeared virtually Tuesday, shown on a television screen in court wearing a beige dress shirt, pictured against a white background. He did not speak other than responding affirmatively to the judge’s prompts.
The counts and charges have remained the same, but new complaint language from the district attorney indicates the woman also allegedly experienced injury to the right arm and was pushed into a car by Majors, in addition to the previously reported laceration to her right ear and finger (the complaint no longer includes reports of bruising and injury to the neck). During the hearing, the defense team said they needed to review additional material with Majors.
In a statement sent after the hearing, Chaudhry said the woman involved was “lying” about the alleged incident and that Majors’ defense team had additional video to back up that claim (Chaudry’s team had previously released video and texts between the woman and majors). Chaudry also claimed the treatment of Majors by the police and the criminal justice is an example of racial bias.
“This is a witch hunt against Jonathan Majors, driven by baseless claims. Instead of dismissing the allegations in the face of the woman’s clear lies, the DA has adjusted the charges to match the woman’s new lies. To be clear, there are no new charges against Mr. Majors,” Chaudry said.
In April, Majors was dropped by his management company, Entertainment 360, and public relations team, The Lede Company.
A day after his arrest, a representative of the Army Enterprise Marketing Office said that a U.S. Army ad campaign featuring Majors had been paused.
Jonathan Majors is currently scheduled to appear in court in person on June 13.
