Actor Gary Busey pleads not guilty to groping five women at 2022 Cherry Hill movie convention
Busey grabbed two women's buttocks and tried to unlatch one woman's bra, prosecutors said.
More than two years after actor Gary Busey was accused of groping five women at a Cherry Hill movie convention, the actor pleaded not guilty at an arraignment Monday morning.
Busey, 80, who lives in Malibu, Calif., appeared in court over Zoom before Camden County Superior Court Judge Gwendolyn Blue to answer to charges of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact and related crimes.
His attorney, Blair Zwillman, entered a plea of not guilty on Busey’s behalf.
“He totally denies anything illegal,” Zwillman said later in an interview. “If need be, he will be defending himself in court.”
The actor spoke only once during the hearing to confirm the date of his next court appearance on April 21.
During a photo shoot with fans at Monster-Mania in 2022, prosecutors say, Busey grabbed two women’s buttocks and put his face near a third woman’s breasts and tried to unhook her bra. In a grand jury indictment filed last month, Busey was accused of groping two additional women: one who said he touched her buttocks and another who said he touched her genitals.
Busey initially denied that he groped anyone, but later asked detectives to convey his apologies to the women and to try to persuade them not to pursue criminal charges, according to the affidavits of probable cause for his arrest. He also told detectives it was possible to touch someone by accident, the affidavit said.
Busey was one of many actors in horror and sci-fi films who took part in the convention and later posed for photos with fans in the Riverside Pavilion area of the DoubleTree Hotel.
Monster-Mania officials said in a statement at the time that Busey had been removed from the convention and told not to return after management received complaints about his behavior. The company said it had encouraged the people who complained to file a police report.
The actor has appeared in more than 100 films, including his Oscar-nominated portrayal of Buddy Holly in The Buddy Holly Story, Lethal Weapon, Predator 2, and Point Break.