Girls writer and Lena Dunham friend Murray Miller has been accused of raping actress Aurora Perrineau. When the news broke last month about the alleged rape, Miller’s attorneys stated that Perrineau and her family had asked for a substantial amount of money for damages. But apparently that was not the case at all, and Miller’s attorneys issued a retraction Thursday.
“In a previous statement to the media, we stated that Ms. Perrineau sought substantial monetary damages from our client Murray Miller. Neither Ms. Perrineau nor her attorney have ever made a demand for money. Our previous above statement was incorrect and the result of a good-faith misunderstanding,” Donald Walerstein and Matthew Walerstein said in a statement to Variety.
The first person to speak up in support of Miller was Dunham, who stated:
During the windfall of deeply necessary accusations over the last few months in Hollywood, we have been thrilled to see so many women’s voices heard and dark experiences in this industry justified. It’s a hugely important time of change and, like every feminist in Hollywood and beyond, we celebrate. But during every time of change there are also incidences of the culture, in its enthusiasm and zeal, taking down the wrong targets. We believe, having worked closely with him for more than half a decade, that this is the case with Murray Miller. While our first instinct is to listen to every woman’s story, our insider knowledge of Murray’s situation makes us confident that sadly this accusation is one of the 3 percent of assault cases that are misreported every year. It is a true shame to add to that number, as outside of Hollywood women still struggle to be believed. We stand by Murray and this is all we’ll be saying about this issue.
Dunham eventually issued an apology for defending Miller after she got her edges snatched on social media:
In Perrineau’s statement, she said that she met Miller when she was 17 years old and out with friends. The now-23-year-old went on to say that after becoming intoxicated, Miller asked her friends for a ride home, and once they arrived at his house, they all went inside.
“He was flirting with me. I told him repeatedly that I was 17 years old,” she said in the statement.
“At some point I woke up in Murray’s bed naked. He was on top of me having sexual intercourse with me. At no time did I consent to any sexual contact with Murray,” she continued.
Perrineau’s claims are currently being investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department.