Actor Michael Pitt charged with sex abuse, assault of ex-girlfriend in New York

Actor Michael Pitt attends the premiere of "Ghost in the Shell" at AMC Loews Lincoln Square on March 29, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, file)

Warning: This article contains disturbing content.

Actor Michael Pitt, known for his TV roles on “Boardwalk Empire” and “Dawson’s Creek,” is accused of sexually assaulting his ex-girlfriend, choking her, and attacking her with a cinder block and a piece of lumber at his New York City home, according to a grand jury indictment.

Pitt, 44, whose lawyers denied the allegations, was arrested Friday on nine counts including first-degree sexual abuse, criminal sexual acts, assault, attempted assault and strangulation. The indictment cites four incidents between April 2020 and August 2021 at Pitt’s home in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn.

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez’s office declined to comment Wednesday beyond the allegations listed in the indictment.

Pitt’s lawyer, Jason Goldman, said he already had exonerating evidence and expected the case to be dismissed.

“Unfortunately, we live in a world where somebody like Mr. Pitt — an accomplished professional who would never so much as contemplate these crimes — can be arrested on the uncorroborated word of an unreliable individual,” Goldman said in a text message to The Associated Press.

He added, “In reality, this baseless claim is suspiciously raised some four or five years after the alleged incident, from a time when the two parties were in a completely consensual relationship.”

Pitt pleaded not guilty to the charges on Friday and posted US$100,000 bail, Goldman said. He is due back in court in Brooklyn on June 17.

The Associated Press does not typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly, which the woman in Pitt’s case has not done.

The indictment alleges Pitt forcibly touched his ex-girlfriend sexually in April 2020. In August 2020, the grand jury alleges Pitt forced oral sex on the woman and assaulted her with a 4-inch-by-4-inch (10-centimetre-by-10-centimetre) piece of lumber.

The indictment also says Pitt attacked her with a cinder block twice in June 2021 and choked her in August 2021.

TMZ reported in 2022 that Pitt was arrested in Brooklyn for allegedly punching a man after taking his phone and, two months later, was brought to a hospital under police escort after a public outburst in New York.

Pitt, who grew up in West Orange, New Jersey, played the character Jimmy Darmody for two seasons on HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire,” with the cast led by Steve Buscemi winning Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2011 and 2012 for outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series. The show also won a Golden Globe for best drama series in 2011.

His first major role came in the 2001 film “Hedwig and the Angry Inch.” In 2005, he starred in “Last Days,” director Gus Van Sant’s film about a fictional rock star inspired by Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain. He also played Henry Parker in one season of The WB’s “Dawson’s Creek” in 1999-2000.

Dave Collins, The Associated Press