A judge in Newport Beach has tossed out the most serious sexual assault charges facing former Bravo TV star Dr. Grant Robicheaux and his model girlfriend, Cerissa Riley.
The pair are accused of drugging and raping several women that they met at the swanky celeb-haunt Nobu in Orange County, as well as other bars in the vicinity. The couple then lured the women back to their home in the Balboa Peninsula section of Newport Beach.
Both have maintained their innocence since first being arrested in 2018 with their lawyers depicting them as swingers who like to party but who never engaged in non-consensual sex. In total, Robicheaux, 42, was charged with assaulting five women, Riley, 36, with assaulting three.
Robicheaux, a hand doctor, was previously best known for his appearances on the reality show Online Dating Rituals of the American Male.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Michael Leversen ruled that the accusers were ‘incompetent’ and referenced ‘various differing statements through the years’ when telling the couple that the case would not go to trial. The judge also said that the victims refused to be medically examined after the encounters.
Dr. Grant Robicheaux, a hand doctor, was previously best known for his appearances on the reality show Online Dating Rituals of the American Male, while Cerissa Riley is a former model
The pair were accused of drugging women after meeting them at bars and luring them back to their home in Newport Beach for the purposes of sexual assault
The accused, who attended court together everyday throughout the ordeal, embraced each other when the decision was read out, as Riley sobbed reports the Orange County Register.
Both are still facing allegations of putting GHB in a woman’s drink and the doctor is still facing charges relating to the possession of assault weapons and cocaine.
Initially there were 13 accusers, some of whom were to be called as witnesses by the prosecution in order to demonstrate a pattern of behavior.
On Friday, defense attorney Philip Cohen told the court that the accusations against Robicheaux were ‘devastating.
Cohen also said that prosecutors ‘have an obligation to not continue a criminal case if they have a reasonable doubt’ and added that it was ‘scary’ that they were planning to pursue the charges.
The lawyer also told the judge that one accuser took 20 months before making her allegation.
Cohen also demonstrated data records that showed one accuser who claimed she’d taken photos of bruises the day after meeting Robicheaux and his girlfriend, actually took the pictures a month later.
Deputy Attorney General Namita Patel maintained that the accusers did not know each other and that their stories of assault mirrored each other.
‘What chances are there that two women who don’t know each other? And what is the motive (to lie)?,’ Patel said, reports My News LA.
Prior to Friday’s decision, the court heard numerous investigators describe the allegations against the pair.
Jane Doe 2 alleges that she met the couple at Nobu Newport Beach on Easter Weekend 2017, after she connected with Robicheaux on a dating app
One of the alleged victims claims she met Riley and Robicheaux at Baja Sharkeez on Oct. 2, 2016 while out drinking with her roommate
According to reports, Riley openly sobbed as the judge read out his decision that the sexual assault charges would not be brought to trial
Newport Beach police Detective Marie Gamble testified as the lead investigator for the accusations brought by the first woman, who was referred to in court by the pseudonym Jane Doe 1, reports the Orange County Register.
Gamble stated that Jane Doe 1 met Riley and Robicheaux at Baja Sharkeez on Oct. 2, 2016 while out drinking with her roommate.
She said that they bought her and her roommate drinks but after a few sips she ‘blanked out.’
She awoke in a state of undress next to her topless roommate in Robicheaux’s home, the court heard.
Unable to wake up her roommate, Jane Doe 1 got up and encountered Robicheaux in a bathroom.
When she asked him what was going on and how they had gotten to the home, she alleges that Robicheaux grabbed her arms and told her: ‘You wanted this, you wanted to come back here.’
According to the testimony Robicheaux tried to kiss Jane Doe 1 and she tried to pull away, kicking off a struggle that led to him hitting her as she fell to the ground.
After Jane Doe 1 screamed, Riley walked up and told Robicheaux: ‘It is going too far, it is not worth it.’
Jane Doe 1’s screams were heard by neighbors, who called 911.
The accused, who attended court together everyday throughout the ordeal, embraced each other when the decision was read out
The couple was first charged with a string of sexual assaults in 2018
The second alleged victim in the case, Jane Doe 2, had her testimony presented by Orange County District Attorney Investigator Jennifer Kearns.
Jane Doe 2 alleges that she met Robicheaux on a dating app while visiting a friend who lived in the area.
They arranged a date at Nobu Newport Beach on Easter Weekend 2017, and she was surprised when Riley attended too.
After a few cocktails she agreed to go with Robicheaux and Riley to a local bar.
The three of them had more drinks, and Jane Doe 2 took cocaine Riley offered her in the bathroom.
The next thing she remembers was walking up the stairs to Robicheaux’s bedroom, the court heard.
She then recalled Robicheaux and Riley touching her and taking her shirt off, after Robicheaux handed her a drink he had put some sort of substance into.
The woman remembers crying hysterically while Riley attempted to console her.
She then locked herself in the bathroom where Riley pleaded with her to unlock the door, allegedly telling Jane Doe 2 that Robicheaux would hurt them if she didn’t and adding, ‘he makes me do this.’
The case against Riley and Robicheaux has been mired in controversy.
It was first brought by then-District Attorney Tony Rackauckas in 2018, but he was unseated by current-District Attorney Todd Spitzer.
Spitzer then controversially moved to dismiss the charges, publicly apologized to Robicheaux and Riley saying there was not sufficient evidence to bring the case.
The women’s attorneys pushed back, arguing that seven different women who had never met brought similar credible allegations against the pair.
A judge denied Spitzer’s request to dismiss the case, describing it as a ‘back-room dismissal’ of a case ‘infected’ by politics.
Two alleged victims pulled out of the case, stating that they had been ‘grossly mistreated’ and ‘dragged through the mud.’
A separate judge dismissed the charges relating to three other women at the request of the State Attorney General’s Office, leaving two remaining women.
