LOS ANGELES – Adult film actor Rom Jeremy took advantage of his fame to meet and often isolate women he raped and sexually assaulted, using the same tactics for years, according to statements by 21 women before a jury. investigator who were declassified on Saturday.
“Wouldn’t it be funny if we had a photo and an autograph of him?” Said a woman, identified as Jane Doe 8, who recalled telling her friend in 2013 when they saw Jeremy in a West Hollywood bar and restaurant. A few minutes later he assaulted her, she said. Several women reported having seizures in the same small bathroom.
“It was like, wow, you know, this is Ron Jeremy, I mean, I was impressed in a way. He is, I don’t want to say ‘a celebrity’, but you know, he was a bit of a celebrity, “said another woman, Jane Doe 7, when Jeremy knocked on the door of a hotel room in Hollywood that she shared with friends and where the porn actor raped her shortly after, according to her testimony.
Jeremy, 68, whose real name is Ronald Jeremy Hyatt, pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of sexual assault, including 12 counts of rape, when the Los Angeles County investigatory jury resumed proceedings against him on August 25. He has been in prison since his arrest in June 2020. His lawyer, Stuart Goldfarb, has said that he is “innocent of all charges” and that he will prove it. Goldfarb did not initially respond to an email requesting further comment.
Jeremy, nicknamed “The Hedgehog” (“The Hedgehog”), was for decades one of the most well-known and prolific performers in the porn industry and became a recognizable character in popular culture through reality shows, public appearances and music videos. For years he attracted people asking for autographs or taking photos with him, the way he met most of the women and girls, aged 15 to 51, whom he is accused of assaulting.
Many women described how Jeremy used the same methods in the same places.
He was a regular at the Rainbow Bar and Grill on Sunset Street in West Hollywood, where he was allowed to use the staff restroom.
He lured women there by offering to show them the kitchen where the restaurant made its famous pizzas or by telling them that he knew of a bathroom they could use after customer services closed when the place started to close.
He followed them into the small space, closed the door and took advantage of its considerable size to prevent them from leaving, and then raped them or committed another kind of sexual assault, according to statements by several women.
Several said Jeremy asked them to write a note about their experience on a napkin or piece of paper, in what prosecutors described as an attempt to gather evidence of consent after the episode. The women, under pressure and wanting to leave, often relented.
Jeremy also gave cash to some victims after the attacks for similar reasons, according to prosecutors.
“He’s a celebrity and he’s known for having sex with people on camera for money,” said Jane Doe 7, who like many of the victims did not report the attack until many years later, following Jeremy’s arrest last year. “I thought there was no way someone would believe me, and I just wanted to get out of there and forget about all that.”
