(Tony Sifert, Headline USA) Megyn Kelly has suggested that Don Lemon accuser Dustin Hice was paid to withdraw sexual assault allegations against the gay CNN anchor.
In August, 2019, Hice sued Lemon, saying Lemon in July 2018 had shoved his fingers into Hice’s face after putting his hand in his pants and rubbing his private parts.
In a statement from CNN at the time, Lemon denied the accusations.
“Don categorically denies these claims and this matter does not merit any further comment at this time,” the statement said.
Nearly three years later, Dustin Hice has dropped his suit against Lemon, claiming he had not accurately remembered the encounter.
HICE statement: “After a lot of inner reflection and a deep dive into my memory, I have come to realize that my recollection of the events that occurred on the night in question when I first met CNN anchor Don Lemon were not what I thought they were when I filed this lawsuit.”
— Dylan Byers (@DylanByers) May 2, 2022
Kelly, for her part, scoffed at the claim.
“It reads like a hostage statement,” she said.
Kelly went on to claim that Lemon must have paid off Hice.
“I have no reportable evidence for this, but I do have 10 years of legal practice under my belt . . . and I can tell you that no plaintiff issues a statement like that walking away from a case against a public figure, unless they’ve been paid to do so,” Kelly told her listeners.
Lemon’s lawyer denied the claim in a statement issued when the suit was dropped.
“This case was a crass money grab from its inception,” the lawyer wrote. “Mr. Lemon has never paid the plaintiff a dime over the course of this unfortunate spectacle.”
But, as Kelly pointed out, neither has Lemon sued Hice for defamation.
