Almost 40 women file lawsuits against filmmaker James Toback

He is said to have held young actresses against their will, sexually abused, assaulted and/or beat them. Filmmaker Toback’s alleged crimes date back to the 1980s.

Dhe wave of lawsuits from the MeToo movement has also caught up with the American filmmaker James Toback. Nearly 40 women filed a joint abuse lawsuit against the 78-year-old in New York on Monday. Toback, whose name came up five years ago following the initial rape allegations against Harvey Weinstein, is said to have “held against, sexually abused, assaulted and/or beat” young actresses against their will.

According to the complaint, the alleged crimes date back to the 1980s. At the end of 2017, the “Los Angeles Times” reported on Toback’s alleged assaults on 38 women. In the months that followed, around 300 more suspected victims contacted the newspaper. However, since the allegations of abuse had become statute-barred, the Los Angeles prosecutor’s office decided not to indict the screenwriter (“Bugsy”).

In New York, the civil suit has now become possible because the state had temporarily lifted the statute of limitations. In addition to Toback’s name, the complaint also includes the name of the renowned Harvard Club in Manhattan. The filmmaker, a university graduate, allegedly repeatedly sexually abused women in the private club. However, the board is said to have ignored complaints from the alleged victims.