Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced on Wednesday that former porn star Ron Jeremy has been indicted on more than 30 sexual assault counts dating back to 1996.
The indictment was unsealed on Wednesday, revealing the performer is accused of assaulting 21 different women, prosecutors said.
The defendant, whose legal name is Ron Jeremy Hyatt, is 68 years old and has been renowned in the adult film industry since the 1970s as a performer and director. He was nicknamed “the Hedgehog” in part for his body hair and heavyset figure and has reportedly appeared in more than 2,000 movies.
According to a press release from Gascón’s office, Hyatt pleaded not guilty to “12 counts of forcible rape, seven counts of forcible oral copulation, six counts of sexual battery by restraint, four counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object, two counts of sexual penetration of an unconscious or asleep person and one count each of lewd act upon a child under the age of 14 or 15, sodomy by use of force and assault with intent to commit rape.”
“Far too often, survivors of sexual assault suffer in isolation,” Gascón said in a statement. “We must ensure that survivors have all options available to help with recovery, including trauma-informed services for healing and support to report such crimes.”
The alleged victims range in age from 15 to 51 years old.
Reuters reported that Hyatt’s attorney said in an email on Wednesday that his client was “innocent of all charges.”
The L.A. County District Attorney’s Office provides more details:
In October 1996, a 19-year-old woman was allegedly raped by the defendant during a photo shoot in the San Fernando Valley.
In October 2000, a 26-year-old woman was allegedly raped by Hyatt at a party in a nightclub. Sometime between 2002 and 2003, he also is accused of sexually assaulting a young woman at a strip club in City of Industry.
The defendant is accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl in June 2004.
A 17-year-old girl was allegedly raped by the defendant at a home in Woodland Hills in 2008. Two years later, a woman went to the defendant’s home where she was allegedly sexually assaulted.
In January 2013, Hyatt is accused of sexually assaulting a 38-year-old woman at a West Hollywood bar the defendant frequented.
The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, the Los Angeles Police Department and the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation.
Hyatt was arrested on June 23, 2020, on charges of raping three women and has remained in jail ever since. He is currently being held in the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in L.A. on $6.6 million bail.
Prosecutors said Hyatt is scheduled to return to court on October 12 for a pretrial conference.