US court overturns Prince Andrew's attempts to dismiss sexual assault case against him

A US federal judge has overturned two attempts by Britain's Prince Andrew to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Virginia Roberts Giuffre alleging Andrew of sexually abusing her when she was 17 years old. In a written order, Judge Lewis A Kaplan instructed the Prince's lawyers to follow a previously agreed-upon document handover schedule. Furthermore, the judge denied the Prince attorneys' plea to dismiss the lawsuit on jurisdictional grounds. They had filed a motion asking the judge to dismiss the case as the complainant Virginia Giuffre no longer lives in the United States.

According to lawyers Andrew Brettler and Melissa Lerner, Giuffre has been residing in Australia for the last two years, and hence cannot claim to be a resident of Colorado, US, where she has not lived since 2019, reported the Associated Press (AP). Giuffre filed a lawsuit in August claiming that Prince Andrew abused her several times in 2001. The Prince has been charged with "first-degree rape" after allegations that he forced Giuffre to get intimate with him in 2001 when she was being trafficked across the world by the royal's late paedophile associate Jeffrey Epstein. However, Andrew's attorneys have repeatedly stated that the Prince "unequivocally" dismisses Giuffre's "false" charges. 

Prince could lose his 'Duke of York' title if he loses case: Report

According to a report by the Sunday Times, the Prince could lose his 'Duke of York' title if he loses the case filed against him. As per the report, other possibilities being discussed by the royal household include placing the embattled royal into an "internal exile" and asking him to surrender any remaining ties to charities. In 2019, the Duke took a break from royal duties, including most of his charity activity, for the time being. In 2019, the Duke took a break from royal duties, including most of his charity activity, for the time being. 

"It would be difficult to persuade Queen Elizabeth II to remove the title of Duke of York, which was held by her father, George VI, before he became king, and which she conferred on her favourite son. However, he could not keep the sanctity of the title," insiders told Sunday Times. However, a spokesperson of Buckingham Palace refuted such claims. This is nothing but just a baseless assumption. We would not like to comment further on a matter which is still in the court," he stated as per Sputnik. 

(Image: AP/ANI)