“Anybody that acts like that in public without any fear of what it might it do to somebody or the consequences it might have, that’s a pattern.”
Dustin Hice, who accused CNN anchor Don Lemon of assaulting him in a Hamptons bar several years ago, outlined the alleged attack during an interview on The Megyn Kelly Show and said that the alleged behavior could be part of a “pattern.”
Hice claimed that the CNN host had put his hand down his own pants, rubbed his genitals and then put his fingers in Hice’s face.
Hice told host Kelly, "Anybody that acts like that in public without any fear of what it might it do to somebody or the consequences it might have, that’s a pattern."
"I wouldn’t be surprised. He’s protected by the fact that he’s African American, gay man on television and I’m just some nobody."
In response to the accusations, a spokesperson for the network told USA Today in 2019, "The plaintiff in this lawsuit has previously displayed a pattern of contempt for CNN on his social media accounts. This claim follows his unsuccessful threats and demands for an exorbitant amount of money from Don Lemon."
According to The New York Post, Lemon’s attorneys are seeking though discovery texts in which Hice allegedly admitted to deleting numerous social media posts of pics in front of Lemon’s home showing Hice posing with a lemon in front of his crotch and rolling on the driveway. Hice allegedly said in texts to a witness of the case that there could be a financial incentive for testifying to back up the story.
The witness said in a deposition that he wasn’t sure that Lemon had physical contact with Hice and was not put on a list of witnesses by Hice’s attorneys.
Hice, joined some coworkers after work at Murf’s Backstreet Tavern where he said he recognized the host and asked the bartender for two Lemon Drops. He told Kelly, "I didn’t mean anything derogatory towards it, but as soon as he said 'I’m just trying to have a good time,' I just walked away."
Hice claimed that afterwards Lemon came approached him and then began the alleged assault and that Lemon asked several times, "Do you like p***y or d**k" during the incident. Lemon is gay and married. Hice said during the interview with Kelly that he is heterosexual.
Lemon’s attorneys denied that assault and said that the CNN host "…is often subjected to racist and homophobic harassment." They also said in a court filing that Hice harassed Lemon and "repeatedly yelled" across the bar at the host.
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