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Naomi Campbell charged
31/03/2006 08:42 - (SA)
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| Naomi Campbell is led by a cop into court. (AP) |
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New York - Naomi Campbell was charged with assault for throwing her cellphone at a housekeeper after accusing her of stealing clothes when she could not find a pair of jeans she wanted to wear on Oprah Winfrey's television show, prosecutors said.
The 35-year-old British-born supermodel was released on her own recognizance on Thursday and allowed to keep her passport after her lawyer argued that her famous face would prevent her from fleeing.
"She is probably the most recognised and prominent model in the world," defense attorney David Breitbart told a judge on Thursday in Manhattan Criminal Court. "There is no place she could go and not be recognised."
Campbell, wearing a white fur poncho, was arraigned on a charge of second-degree assault before Judge Richard Weinberg, who allowed Breitbart to enter a plea of not guilty on her behalf.
The housekeeper was treated at a hospital for a cut that required four staples, said Assistant District Attorney Elina Kreditor, who asked the judge to set bail at $3 500 and to order Campbell to surrender her British passport.
Request for bail 'an insult'
Breitbart called the request for $3 500 bail "an insult," saying his client's Park Avenue apartment is worth more than $3m and she earns "more than six figures on a regular basis."
The lawyer said Campbell needed her passport to travel to South Africa next week to visit Nelson Mandela. He asked the judge for orders to keep the housekeeper away from Campbell's apartment.
The judge said the housekeeper, Ana Scolavino, would have to give up her key to the apartment. He issued an order of protection against Campbell, telling her she could have no contact with the employee. He scheduled her next court appearance for June 27.
The alleged assault took place at about 08:30 on Thursday inside Campbell's apartment, according to a criminal complaint. The housekeeper was hit in the back of the head and was treated at Lenox Hill Hospital, it said.
Campbell was taken into custody shortly after police responded to the hospital to investigate the reported attack.
Facing a familiar sea of cameras as she left a Manhattan police station, Campbell smiled but never stopped to pose.
Campbell, her hands covered by her poncho, exited the station shortly after 16:00 in a scene that was part runway, part walk. Scores of photographers, reporters and film crews gathered to record her exit after she was charged with assault; she responded by flashing a quick smile. Campbell ducked into an unmarked car, and authorities took her to Criminal Court in lower Manhattan for processing.
In a statement, a Campbell spokesperson said the supermodel was not responsible for any assault.
"We believe this is a case of retaliation, because Naomi had fired her housekeeper earlier this morning," said the statement from JR Johnson. "We are confident the courts will see it the same way."
- AP
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