Lawsuit claims comedian Chris D’Elia knowingly had sex with 17-year-old girl, solicited explicit images
A new lawsuit claims comedian Chris D’Elia had sex with a 17-year-old girl and solicited scores of sexually explicit photos and videos from her, knowing she was a minor.
The Jane Doe plaintiff filed her complaint in federal court in Los Angeles Tuesday, claiming D’Elia’s predatory behavior violated federal child sexual exploitation and child pornography laws.
The woman, now 24, says the abuse started in 2014 when she was a high school student and virgin who met D’Elia over social media.
“Defendant D’Elia, true to his predatory pattern, soon invited Ms. Doe to one of his comedy shows and secluded her in his hotel room where he degraded her by, among other things, ejaculating on her face,” the 27-page lawsuit states.
The filing claims D’Elia asked the teen “several times” how old she was during their first meeting at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Conn., on Nov. 7, 2014.
When she told him she was 17, D’Elia allegedly said he found it “hot” how young she was.
“After that, defendant D’Elia—then a 34-year-old man who knew that Ms. Doe was 17, still in high school, and had been a virgin prior to meeting him—exploited his own fame and status and Ms. Doe’s youth and inexperience,” the filing says.
“He constructed a manipulative, controlling, and abusive dynamic in which he demanded Ms. Doe provide him sexually explicit images of herself over the internet, directed her what specific sexual poses and acts she should perform for him, and psychologically punished her when she refused,” the paperwork states.
The age of consent in Connecticut is 16. The lawsuit does not say where Doe was residing when D’Elia allegedly solicited and obtained the sexually explicit images.
“Chris denies these allegations and will vigorously defend against them in court,” a rep for D’Elia said in a statement to the Daily News Tuesday.
The actor and comedian, 40, was first accused last June of grooming and soliciting nude photos from underage girls.
He quickly denied ever “knowingly” pursuing any minors, then took a break from the spotlight until he recently spoke up again.
“I know it looks bad,” he said in a new YouTube video last week that claimed the allegations over the summer didn’t “show the full scope of what happened.”
“Sex — it controlled my life,” he admitted. “It was my focus, um, all the time.”
But he remained adamant all his sexual encounters were “legal and consensual.”
The Jane Doe behind the lawsuit mentioned the Feb. 19 video in her paperwork.
