A court has dismissed the final two charges in a lawsuit against actress Rosario Dawson where a former family friend and employee alleged that she and her family misgendered him, insulted him, and assaulted him.
After most of the allegations were dropped last year voluntarily by Dedrek Finley, the man who filed the lawsuit, the final two allegations have been thrown out by a Los Angeles Court.
After Finley did not respond to repeated court orders for documentation, answers to questions, and an independent medical examination, the court decided to not proceed with the case.
"My family is pleased that this baseless suit is over," Dawson wrote on Twitter. "While the vast majority of the false claims had been voluntarily withdrawn last year — including every single false claim of discrimination — the court has now terminated the remainder of the case allowing us all to move forward."
She continued, saying that "these false claims came from someone we’ve known as chosen family for decades and who we were trying so hard to help out, as we have many times in the past, was very heartbreaking. Nevertheless, we have great empathy for him and have only ever wished him well."
In 2019, Dedrek Finley, a trans man and longtime family friend of the Dawsons who they said considered him "chosen family," filed a lawsuit against The Mandalorian star and her family alleging that they discriminated against him for being trans.
Finley spoke with Out about his allegations in November of that year. "[The family] was never expecting me to take a stand for myself," he said. "I always hoped there would be some reconciliation, but when it goes physical, that’s it. You have to take a stand for yourself...not only for myself but for the community."
He said that after he came out as a trans man, the family started treating him differently, including insulting his gender, deadnaming him, and misgendering him. He claimed that Dawson pinned him to the ground and took away his cell phone while her mother beat him and yelled "you’re not so much of a man now." He filed 20 discrimination claims against the family.
Last year, 18 of the 20 allegations were "withdrawn voluntarily without settlement," and Dawson spoke out about the lawsuit.
"Well, firstly, I just want to say I understand that, and why people were concerned, and are concerned," she told Vanity Fair. "I would be, too, if I heard some of those claims."
"But I mean, as we're seeing right now in these past months, and just recently actually, the truth is coming out," she continued. "Every single claim of discrimination has been dismissed by the person who made them...the reason that all the discrimination claims were dropped is because they didn’t happen."
Dawson herself came out as queer last year. "Happy Pride month!" she wrote in an Instagram post sharing a song by lesbian rapper Chika. "Sending love to my fellow LGBTQ+ homies. Keep being strong in the face of adversity. Loud & proud."
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