A jury has ordered Oscar-winning filmmaker Paul Haggis to pay at least $7.5 million to publicist who accused him of rape.
"Million Dollar Baby" and "Crash," against Haleigh Breest, a publicist who met him while working at movie premieres in the early 2010s. After a screening afterparty in January 2013, he offered her a lift home and invited her to hisBreest, 36, said Haggis then subjected her to unwanted advances and ultimately compelled her to perform oral sex and raped her despite her entreaties to stop.
Jurors sided with Breest, who said she suffered psychological and professional consequences from her encounter with Haggis. She sued in late 2017. "I thought I was getting a ride home. I agreed to have a drink. What happened never should have happened. And it had nothing to do with me, and everything to do with him and his actions," she told jurors.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Paul Haggis’ Lawyer Calls Rape Claim “Awkward One-Night Stand” In Closing ArgumentPaul Haggis had an “awkward one-night stand” in 2013 with an infatuated young woman, Haleigh Breest, who wanted more intimacy from the Oscar-winning filmmaker and, when there was none, made up a ra…
Read more »
Paul Haggis Rape Trial: Jury Deliberations to Begin After Tense Closing ArgumentsPaul Haggis' attorney Priya Chaudhry tried to combat former film publicist Haleigh Breest's claims that the filmmaker raped her: “What she does is create publicity…She wants to be famous. She wants to be Monica Lewinsky.”
Read more »
Jury Deliberations in Paul Haggis Rape Lawsuit Set to StartAttorneys delivered closing arguments about the 2013 encounter ahead of jury deliberations, which begin Thursday.
Read more »
Paul Haggis Rape Trial To Jury After Lawyers Deliver Closing Arguments – UpdateUPDATED, 4:15 PM: Paul Haggis coaxed Haleigh Breest into his apartment in New York after a party in 2013 with the intent of having sex with her whether she consented to it or not, and then he raped…
Read more »
Deliberations in Paul Haggis rape lawsuit set to startJurors are expected to start deliberating Thursday in a rape lawsuit against filmmaker Paul Haggis
Read more »
Paul Haggis Found Liable On All Counts In New York Rape Civil TrialA New York jury today found filmmaker Paul Haggis liable on all three counts of rape and sexual abuse in his treatment of Haleigh Breest, who left a party in Manhattan with him in 2013 and then sue…
Read more »