Could the Perez Hilton assault be heading to a lawsuit? Perez Hilton’s alleged punching has prompted his lawyer to tell press today that Hilton “will take legal action”.
Hilton’s attorney issued a statement moments ago to press:
“Perez will take legal action against anyone who chooses to resort to physical violence as a means to respond to criticism they do not like …
“All persons responsible for this cowardly act of physical violence will be sued and held legally responsible for their actions. His first amendment rights will not be infringed upon through fear, intimidation or violence.”
“[We] … are conducting a legal investigation as to whether Will.i.am encouraged and/or instructed Molina to engage in this physical assault.”
Polo Molina Pictures
Polo Molina Photo 1
Polo Molina Photo 2
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CLICK HERE FOR THE RESPONSE VIDEO
Hilton had first accused Will.I.Am, twittering:
“I was assaulted by Will.I.Am of the Black Eyed Peas and his security guards. I am bleeding. Please, I need to file a police report. No joke”.
Will.i.am. promptly denied Hilton’s claims.
The event as taken several different turns since Sunday on issues beside the alleged confrontation. One has been Hilton’s admitted use of a slur against the Peas frontman. GLAAD responded Monday as follows:
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) today issued the following statement in response to a video posted by celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, in which he made the following remarks about a confrontation with will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas and members of the band’s entourage.
“And that is when I made the split-second decision - that I was gonna say what I thought was the worst possible thing that thug [will.i.am] would ever want to hear. As I was standing my ground - without being violent or physical which I would never do - I told him - and you know what? I don’t need to respect you and you’re a f**. You’re gay and stop being such a f***ot.”
“These are vulgar anti-gay slurs that feed a climate of hatred and intolerance toward our community,” said Rashad Robinson, Senior Director of Media Programs at GLAAD. “For someone in our own community to use it to attack another person by saying that it is, quote, ‘The worst possible thing that thug would ever want to hear,’ is incredibly dangerous. It legitimizes use of a slur that is often linked to violence against our community. And it sends a message that it is OK to attempt to dehumanize people by exploiting anti-gay attitudes.”
“We have reached out to Hilton and asked him to apologize for promoting this anti-gay slur, and we would ask media outlets to avoid repetition of the slur in their coverage of this story.”
Hilton fired back a response Tuesday:
“I am saddened GLAAD chose to victimize me further by criticizing me for how I non-violently dealt with a very scary situation that, unfortunately, turned violent. While I doubt I will get an apology from GLAAD, nor do I expect one, I would just hope people know how difficult it is to intellectualize a situation and think rationally when a thug disguised as a musician is screaming at your face and intimidating you. I am just very fortunate and grateful that nothing more serious happened to me.”
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