Jimmy Bennett's lawyer fired back at Asia Argento's "offensive" allegations after the actress claimed that Bennett had assaulted her, rather than initiating the alleged sexual encounter, as he has claimed.
"This situation has escalated due to Asia's offensive and dismissive interpretation of this situation in whole. After reviewing the letter from Asia's third attorney, I am shocked, appalled, and disgusted by their representations, mischaracterizations, and attacks," Bennett's lawyer, Gordon K. Sattro, told Us Weekly.
"If I were to sum up the letter from Asia and her attorney in a single word it would be 'hypocritical,' with a close second being 'nonsensical. We read this statement as a self-serving and slanderous one which is offensive, not only to my client, but in all likelihood to victims both silent and outspoken, everywhere. It would seem that Asia is implying that her truth is the actual truth because of her perceived position in this all too important movement and a delusional view of her own importance to it."
Argento's lawyer issued a statement Wednesday that includes a text the actress allegedly sent.
"The horny kid jumped me ... I had sex with him it felt weird," she wrote, according to Mark Jay Heller.
Heller also claimed that Argento felt "frozen" and that Bennett said she had been his "sexual fantasy" since he was 12 years old.
Bennett previously claimed that Argento sexually assaulted him in 2013, when he was just 17. He settled with the actress last year for $380,000, according to documents acquired by the New York Times.
"At the time I believed there was still a stigma to being in the situation as a male in our society," Bennett, now 22, told the Times. "I didn't think that people would understand the event that took place from the eyes of a teenage boy. I would like to move past this event in my life, and today I chose to move forward, no longer in silence."
Argento, who admitted to the encounter but denied any assault, said her late boyfriend, Anthony Bourdain, was the one who paid Bennett. She has since said that she will end the payments to him.
Bennett's attorney said his client will donate the rest of his payout to the #MeToo movement.
"Ms. Argento may be a victim of Harvey Weinstein, but simply being a victim of another does not absolve you of culpability for your own wrongdoings and the victims you leave behind," Sattro said. "Jimmy will not be silenced or shamed, we stand with Jimmy and will see this through until what is right and what is just prevails."
