Asia Argento shock: Could #MeToo be damaged by statutory rape allegation against her?

Maria Puente | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Weinstein accuser Asia Argento allegedly paid off sex assault accuser Prominent Harvey Weinstein accuser and MeToo advocate, Asia Argento, allegedly paid off a young actor who accused her of sexually assaulting him.

Has the #MeToo movement just suffered a black eye? Maybe, maybe not.

After taking a leading role in the movement to call out sexual abuse, Italian actress Asia Argento is herself facing accusations: that she had sex with an underage boy in a Los Angeles-area hotel room in 2013 and quietly arranged to pay him off shortly after she publicly accused Harvey Weinstein of raping her.

The news was shocking enough to leave #MeToo champions stunned and groping for something to say in answer to questions about whether this would, should or could damage #MeToo, the culture-changing movement to press sexual abuse allegations against powerful men in multiple industries, especially Hollywood.

Laura Palumbo, communications director for the National Sexual Violence Resource Center in Washington, sounded somewhat forlorn and careful in what she told USA TODAY on Monday.

"We’re all sort of collectively processing what this means for the #MeToo movement," she said about her organization, which has been a leading voice against sexual violence. "From our perspective this doesn’t undermine the movement. ... #MeToo has always been bigger than one case or any one story."

But it was a shocking story: The New York Times, citing an encrypted email it received from an unidentified sender that contained legal documents, reported late Sunday that Argento, 42, agreed in a private settlement to pay $380,000 to a former child actor-turned-rock musician, Jimmy Bennett, who said she sexually assaulted him in a Marina del Rey hotel room shortly after he turned 17. Argento was 37 at the time.

The age of consent in California is 18, then and now, and it's a crime – statutory rape – to have sex with someone who is underage. Moreover, the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse, while complicated, is generally 10 years in California.

The Times said the documents it examined included a selfie of the two lying in bed. "As part of the agreement, Mr. Bennett, who is now 22, gave the photograph and its copyright to Ms. Argento. Three people familiar with the case said the documents were authentic," the newspaper reported.

The two had appeared together in "The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things," a 2004 film Argento directed, starred in and helped write. Bennett, who has a credits list dating back to 2002, was 7 when he was cast in the film.

A picture on Argento's Instagram page dated May 9, 2013, shows a partial view of the two of them. "Happiest day of my life reunion with @jimmymbennett xox," she captioned the photo.

Neither Argento nor Bennett nor their lawyers or representatives have commented to USA TODAY. The Times said Bennett's lawyer, Gordon Sattro, gave the newspaper a statement saying Bennett would "continue doing what he has been doing over the past months and years, focusing on his music.”

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the police agency for Marina del Rey (just north of LAX), said there has been no report filed but detectives were aware of the reports and were looking into the matter.

"To date, the LASD has not located any police report alleging criminal activity within our jurisdiction in relation to this incident," according to a statement posted online by Capt. Darren Harris of the Sheriff's Information Bureau. "The LASD’s Special Victims Bureau is attempting to reach out to the reported victim and/or his representatives in an effort to appropriately document any potential criminal allegations." .

More: Harvey Weinstein scandal: A complete list of the 87 accusers

Greg Risling, a spokesman for the Los Angeles district attorney's office, which has set up a special task force to review allegations against Hollywood men accused of sex crimes, had no information on whether any case involving allegations against Argento had been presented to his office by a police agency.

But advocates of #MeToo grappled with the news gingerly. Argento is one of the key figures in the movement: She was one of the first to publicly accuse fallen movie mogul Weinstein of rape.

"If this happened, there is no way to justify it, no way to excuse it, even if (Argento) is a victim" of sexual assault, says women's rights attorney Gloria Allred, a #MeToo leader who represents one of three women whose sexual assault accusations against Weinstein are now being prosecuted in criminal court in Manhattan. Argento is not one of them.

Weinstein has pleaded not guilty to the charges and has denied any non-consensual sex since he was first accused of sexual abuse in double exposes in the Times and The New Yorker in October 2017. On Monday, his lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, released a statement assailing Argento for a "stunning level of hypocrisy."

"What is perhaps most egregious is the timing, which suggests that at the very same time Argento was working on her own secret settlement for the alleged sexual abuse of a minor, she was positioning herself at the forefront of those condemning Mr. Weinstein," Brafman said in the statement sent to USA TODAY.

"The sheer duplicity of her conduct is quite extraordinary and should demonstrate to everyone how poorly the allegations against Mr. Weinstein were actually vetted and accordingly cause all of us to pause and allow due process to prevail, not condemnation by fundamental dishonesty," Brafman said.

Weinstein's foes were adamant that the allegations against Argento do not undermine allegations against Weinstein or the #MeToo movement in general.

"Yes, (statutory rape) is a crime. Yes, it could still be prosecuted," Allred said. "But if (Bennett) doesn't file a report or if he doesn't wish to testify, the reality is it's unlikely it would be prosecuted. Prosecutors generally will not force a victim who is reluctant or refuses to testify."

Moreover, Allred says, the encounter between Bennett and Argento has been resolved by a settlement and payout, and "in a way that appears to be to the satisfaction of both parties." This is routine and there's nothing wrong with such settlements, Allred said, having negotiated countless such resolutions herself.

"This should not be a black eye for the #MeToo movement," Allred said. "I think the movement will not only continue, I see it getting bigger, not lessening."

Similar sentiments came from Tarana Burke, the woman credited with starting the movement back in 2007. She said in a series of tweets Monday that the movement will endure even though it is "jarring" to hear "the names of some of our faves connected to sexual violence."

She tweeted that the debate should shift from talking about people to talking about sexual violence as a consequence of power and privilege.

"People will use these recent news stories to try and discredit this movement - don’t let that happen. This is what Movement is about. It’s not a spectator sport. It is people generated. We get to say “this is/isn’t what this movement is about!” she tweeted.

People will use these recent news stories to try and discredit this movement - don’t let that happen. This is what Movement is about. It’s not a spectator sport. It is people generated. We get to say “this is/isn’t what this movement is about!” — Tarana (@TaranaBurke) August 20, 2018

Lisa Bloom, another California women's rights attorney and daughter of Allred, says human beings can be victim and victimizer, "saint and monster," at the same time.

"This will have zero impact on #MeToo, which is not about one person or 10 people or even 1,000 people, it's about millions worldwide who have chosen to tell their stories of sexual harassment and assault and woken up the world to this epidemic," Bloom told USA TODAY. "There are always going to be bumps in the road, but we can't lose sight of the power of this movement."

Actress Rose McGowan, another Weinstein accuser and #MeToo leader, said she was heartbroken by the news and urged people to "be gentle."

"I got to know Asia Argento ten months ago. Our commonality is the shared pain of being assaulted by Harvey Weinstein. My heart is broken. I will continue my work on behalf of victims everywhere," she tweeted Monday.

I got to know Asia Argento ten months ago. Our commonality is the shared pain of being assaulted by Harvey Weinstein. My heart is broken. I will continue my work on behalf of victims everywhere. — rose mcgowan (@rosemcgowan) August 20, 2018

"None of us know the truth of the situation and I’m sure more will be revealed," she added in another tweet. "Be gentle."

None of us know the truth of the situation and I’m sure more will be revealed. Be gentle. — rose mcgowan (@rosemcgowan) August 20, 2018

Jodi Omear, a spokeswoman for the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), a leading anti-rape advocacy group, said all accusers, or "survivors" as they are called in the movement, should be believed.

"The #MeToo movement has given even more people who have suffered sexual violence the courage to come forward and tell their stories," Omear said in a statement to USA TODAY. "Sexual assault can happen to anyone at any time, and we should take all allegations seriously so that people continue to tell their stories and get the justice they deserve."

A person’s ability to be both a perpetrator and a victim of crime has never negated an actions’ criminality. This is not new. Asia Argento is selfish for centering herself in a cause to which she presented reputational risk - however unfair - but #metoo has lost no legitimacy. — feminist next door (@emrazz) August 20, 2018

On Twitter, supporters of the movement sought to reassure others that #MeToo will not be damaged by this episode.

"A person’s ability to be both a perpetrator and a victim of crime has never negated an actions’ criminality. This is not new. Asia Argento is selfish for centering herself in a cause to which she presented reputational risk - however unfair - but #metoo has lost no legitimacy," tweeted a user called feminist next door.

"Asia Argento sexually assaulted a minor. That is reprehensible & unforgivable. Do I think it means she wasn't assaulted by Weinstein? No. Do I think it means she has been breathtakingly narcissistic and selfish in making herself a face of the #MeToo movement? Absolutely. Shame," tweeted Australian comedian/actress and writer Rosie Waterland.

Asia Argento sexually assaulted a minor. That is reprehensible & unforgivable. Do I think it means she wasn't assaulted by Weinstein? No. Do I think it means she has been breathtakingly narcissistic and selfish in making herself a face of the #MeToo movement? Absolutely. Shame. — Rosie Waterland (@RosieWaterland) August 20, 2018

But Argento also was subjected to Twitter criticism, some of it unprintable, from people never much impressed by the movement, Argento or McGowan.

"#Metoo movement will fail if its leaders engage in hypocrisy, cronyism & double standards. Rose McGowan’s advice should apply to all who are accused, not just to her friend #AsiaArgento," tweeted Christina Hoff Sommers, a conservative self-described feminist and author of the books "War Against Boys" and "Who Stole Feminism?"

She accused McGowan of advocating a double standard.

Rules according to Rose McGowan: If a MAN is accused: Follow Tweet 1. If WOMAN accused: Tweet 2. Sorry, but such double standards discredit #Metoo The answer to male privilege is not female privilege. The answer is basic fairness for all. pic.twitter.com/T7mKNkGci4 — Christina Sommers (@CHSommers) August 20, 2018

"People coming to the defense of Asia Argento & telling us to 'not jump to conclusions' weren’t saying this about Harvey Weinstein, Trump, or Kevin Spacey. Does she get the benefit of the doubt Bc she’s a woman? Women can be predators too," tweeted Elizabeth Koslo.