Stephen A. Smith is slamming JAY-Z‘s “friends” for not publicly coming to his defense before his sexual assault accuser and her attorney dropped their lawsuit.
RELATED: JAY-Z Granted Permission To File Dismissal Motion In Jane Doe Sexual Assault Case With Diddy
As we previously shared, on Friday (February 14), Houston-based attorney Tony Buzbee dropped his sexual assault lawsuit against JAY-Z, born Shawn Carter, and Diddy, born Sean Combs. The lawsuit, filed by an anonymous Jane Doe, accused the hip-hop moguls of sexually assaulting the woman in 2000 when she was just 13 years old.
However, in a surprising turn of events, the attorneys representing Jane Doe voluntarily dropped the case, filing a dismissal in a New York court on Friday.
The court document, reviewed by Variety, states, “Jane Doe hereby gives notice that the above-captioned Action is voluntarily dismissed, with prejudice.” This means the lawsuit cannot be refiled, effectively closing the chapter on the accusations as they were presented.
JAY-Z Claims ‘The System Has Failed’ After Sexual Assault Accuser Drops Lawsuit
After the lawsuit was dropped, JAY-Z, who has been vocal about his innocence throughout the entire case, again spoke out. He wasted no time in addressing the allegations and how they impacted him and his family. He stated:
“This civil suit was without merit and never going anywhere. The fictional tale they created was laughable, if not for the seriousness of the claims. I would not wish this experience on anyone. The trauma that my wife, my children, my loved ones, and I have endured can never be dismissed. This 1-800 lawyer gets to file a suit hiding behind Jane Doe, and when they quickly realize that the money grab is going to fail, they get to walk away with no repercussions. The system has failed.”
RELATED: Tony Buzbee Drops Sexual Assault Lawsuit Against JAY-Z And Diddy
Stephen A. Smith Slams JAY-Z’s ‘Friends’ For Not Defending Him In Sexual Assault Lawsuit With Diddy
JAY-Z hasn’t been the only person to speak out after his sexual assault accuser dropped her case. Sports and entertainment commentator Stephen A. Smith took to a recent episode of his self-titled show to comment. He says:
“JAY-Z ain’t that one. As far as I’m concerned, he did exactly what he was supposed to do. He didn’t sit idly by and watch his name be raked through the coals and sullied the way that they did. Most of us would’ve. Most of us would’ve let our lawyers handle it. We would’ve shut up. We would’ve kept silent. He didn’t do that. I remember I was taking a lot of heat for coming to JAY-Z’s defense. My initial question is, ‘Where the hell are y’all now?’ And to the people who have smiled in JAY-Z’s face — who were supposed to be his friends, who were supposed to be supportive of him — where y’all at? Where y’all at? Let me be very, very clear. None of us were there. We don’t know what happened or whatever the case may be. That’s fair. If you have a microphone and a camera in front of you, you have an obligation to say that.”
RELATED: JAY-Z Files Lawsuit Against Attorney Tony Buzbee For False Rape
Smith continues to ask his audience why he was dragged along with JAY-Z for defending him. He asks:
“But, in the same breath, what was I being attacked for? Ladies and gentlemen, if you would recall, what I said was: ‘The man that I have known and the man that I have been friends with for 25 years, there’s no way I believe he’s capable of something like that.’ See, the bigger issue is the damn punks that society has turned us into. You can say two things at once. You can say, ‘I wasn’t there and I have no factual evidence to prove my position. But, the person that I’ve known for 25 years? Nah. I don’t believe he would do that.'”
Filled with much passion, Smith continues to warn his loved ones against following the same steps as JAY-Z’s. He urges:
“I want to make sure that I’m clear because I got friends and loved ones and people like that in my life. And if y’all EVER handle some stuff with me the way that some of these people handled this stuff with JAY-Z, y’all can kiss my a**! And you can go to hell! Because at the very least, somebody should be able to say, ‘I’ve known Stephen A. for 20, 25, 30 years, 40 years. Nah. I can’t see him doing that.’ You[‘re] just gonna go silent? And just leave him hanging like that? When it ain’t like he was silent. It ain’t like he’s hiding and leaving others to talk for him. No, he spoke and said, ‘I’m innocent. This is not true.’ And nobody can stand up and say, ‘Nah. That brother that I know, I can’t see that. A 13-year-old girl?'”
Stephen A. Smith concludes his commentary by highlighting the shift in the court of public opinion and addressing people wanting clicks. He says:
“Yes, you are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. And we understand that in the court of public opinion, it’s shifted in this day and age. You know what the sad part is? Some of you out there might have believed that JAY-Z was totally innocent, but it wasn’t clickbait to say that. So, you wanted to throw it out there and give a reaction for clickbait purposes. That’s sad. It really, really is. If I’m Attorney Buzbee, I would watch my back. ‘Cause JAY-Z’s coming. I don’t believe for one second that JAY-Z’s going to sit idly by and stop there. I don’t believe it. I don’t believe it.”
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