The Django Unchained actress who claimed racial profiling by police last month was charged Tuesday with lewd conduct, the Los Angeles City Attorney’s office confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. TMZ first broke the story.
Daniele Watts and her boyfriend, Brian James Lucas, were each reportedly charged with lewd conduct, a misdemeanor that could result in up to six months in county jail and a $1,000 fine.
“The LAPD did a subsequent follow-up investigation and there was evidence from various civilian eyewitnesses,” a City Attorney spokesman told THR. “It more than met the threshold.”
The couple were stopped after eyewitnesses called the Los Angeles Police Department complaining of a couple having sex in public during daylight hours. Both parties initially denied any wrongdoing, with Watts writing on Facebook that the couple was only “showing affection, fully clothed, in a public place.”
Lucas additionally claimed they were detained because the LAPD mistook them for a prostitute and a john because she is black and Lucas is white. The incident garnered national media attention, but a recording leaked to TMZ seemed to indicate the initial complaint had some merit.
The couple will be arraigned in the Los Angeles Superior Courthouse in Van Nuys on Nov. 13.
5:46 pm, Oct. 21 Updated with City Attorney’s confirmation, quote, and arraignment date.
