‘Boardwalk Empire' star Michael Pitt's lawyer says sex assault case ‘built on a bed of lies'
NEW YORK — The sexual assault case against 'Boardwalk Empire' star Michael Pitt is 'built on a bed of lies,' the actor's lawyer told the Daily News after a brief court appearance in Brooklyn.
Pitt, 44, was busted May 2 on charges he sexually assaulted his ex-girlfriend and attacked her with a four-by-four and a cinder block, at the Brooklyn home they previously shared.
'This case is an utter, absolute disgrace,' Pitt's lawyer, Robert Gottlieb, said outside the Brooklyn Supreme Court building, as the actor stood silently by his side. Pitt didn't offer any comment.
'It is built on lie after lie after lie. We have obtained some of the discovery, not all of it,' Gottlieb said, referring to the materials prosecutors must release to defense attorneys, 'and already we can say, it is built on a bed of lies, which is unbelievable that it even came to this point.'
'It is clear that the district attorney did not investigate this case, because if they investigated it, there is no way that this man, who is innocent, would find his way in this court,' Gottlieb said.
He didn't elaborate further.
A spokesman for Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Tuesday that his office can't comment on pending cases.
Pitt is charged with criminal sex act, criminal sexual abuse, assault, attempted assault and strangulation. The top charge carries a maximum 25-year prison sentence, if convicted at trial. He's pleaded not guilty to the charges, and remains free on $100,000 bail.
The indictment against the 'Funny Games' and 'Ghost in the Shell' actor describes four disturbing allegations by the woman, who is not named in court papers.
He's accused of forcibly touching her anus and vagina with his finger in April 2020, forcing her into oral sex and assaulting her with a four-by-four in August 2020, attacking her with a cinder block in June 2021 and strangling her in August 2021.
On Tuesday, Gottlieb sparred with Assistant District Attorney Amanda Fisher over the release of documents and evidence during an appearance in Brooklyn Supreme Court in Pitts' sexual assault case.
In court, Pitt's lawyer Gottleib accused the D.A.'s office of slow-walking key documents in the case.
'We do know that, as of this late date, that we haven't received a single police report… no detective notes, no complaint reports, no DIR [domestic incident] reports,' Gottlieb told Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Abena Darkeh, adding that Pitt was under investigation as far back as February 2024.
'It's all due now,' the defense attorney said, 'and it's all glaring what's missing. It goes to the heart of the investigation that goes on for so long.'
Fisher countered that the case was investigated entirely by the Brooklyn D.A.'s office. 'There is no NYPD involvement in this case other than the arrest,' she said.
Pitt returns to court July 1, when the judge is expected to hear an application to modify the actor's bail so he can get his passport back.
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