A judge in southern Italy on Monday ordered film director Paul Haggis released from custody at his hotel while prosecutors decide whether to continue their investigation into whether he allegedly had sex with a woman without her consent for over two days, said his lawyer.
Michele Laforgia told the Associated Press that his client Haggis, who is also a screenwriter and Oscar winner, is still in Italy. The verdict was delivered by Judge Vilma Gilli from Puglia, the region that forms the “heel” of the Italian peninsula.
Canadian-born Haggis, 69, was arrested by police in Puglia on June 19 after a woman told authorities he had non-consensual sex with her for two days while he was in Italy to attend an arts festival in the tourist town of Ostuni.
According to the lawyer, he had protested his innocence.
Laforgia said in text messages that the judge ruled that no signs of violence or abuse were found on the woman, who was described by prosecutors as young and foreign and by Italian media as 28-year-old English.
The courthouse was closed Monday night and Gilli could not be immediately reached for comment.
Corriere della Sera, quoting from the judge’s ruling, said she had concluded that there was “no restrictive violent behavior” in haggis. The judge also noted in the ruling that the woman’s decision to be with Haggis at his accommodation was “spontaneous,” according to the Italian daily.
It was Gilli who on June 22, after a closed-door hearing, ordered Haggis to remain in custody while the investigation continued.
Prosecutors did not immediately say whether they would drop the investigation or continue after the judge’s ruling.
When asked if the case could be closed, Laforgia replied: “Let’s see what the prosecution will do at this point”.
Haggis, who lives in the United States, had other legal problems. In recent years, four women in the United States have accused him of sexual misconduct.