Prominent criminal justice reform advocate cleared of rape charges: reports

A social justice advocate and former Boston prosecutor who was accused of raping a woman at a New York City hotel five years ago has been acquitted of all charges by a Manhattan jury.

Adam Foss, 43, of Los Angeles, had been charged with first-degree rape and sexual abuse in Manhattan last year for allegedly raping a 25-year-old woman as she slept in a Midtown hotel room on Oct. 21, 2017.

On Friday, a jury acquitted the former Suffolk County, Massachusetts, prosecutor after a two-week trial and several days of deliberations, according to The New York Times.

The verdict, according to defense attorney Priya Chaudhry, is a “testament to the fairness of our legal system when it functions properly.”

But it also showed what Chaudhry called a concerning trend within Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office to “weaponize accusations where a Black man is accused by a white woman, casting aside the need for robust evidence in favor of narrative-driven prosecutions,” she wrote.

“This represents a misapplication of justice, fueled by societal biases that have no place in a system pledged to fairness and equality,” Chaudhry said in a statement to The Post.

“As Mr. Foss turns the page on this chapter, he looks forward to time with his wife and young son and is carefully evaluating his legal options to address the grave impact these false accusations have had on his life.”

Foss — a public speaker who once gave a TED talk about criminal justice reform — was a rising star who vaulted to national prominence in 2016 when he founded Prosecutor Impact, an organization that trained other prosecutors in practices Foss thought would lower incarceration rates, the Times said.

He was also featured as one of Fast Company’s most creative people and The Root’s most influential black Americans, according to the paper.

He and the victim had been calling and texting for a month prior to the date, which is when prosecutors said she repeatedly rebuffed his efforts to have sex before the two fell asleep.

Prosecutors said Foss took advantage of the woman as she slept, adding that she “was incapable of consent by reason of being physically helpless,” according to the indictment.

During closing arguments, Chaudhry tried to paint the accuser’s story as not credible, and read texts to the jury that the accuser later sent to her friend that described the night with Foss as “cute,” the Times said.

But that account allegedly changed after Foss ghosted her, Chaudhry said.

Three years ago, singer Raegan Sealy publicly accused Foss of raping her after the pair met at an event where he was speaking and she was performing.

The DA’s office did not confirm if the accuser in its case was Sealy because of its practice of not revealing victims’ identities.

On Sunday, a spokesperson for Bragg’s office said that he was disappointed in the jury’s decision.

“Survivors of sexual assault deserve to have their day in court, and our prosecutors fight every day to center and uplift their voices,” the spokesperson said in an email.

“While we are disappointed, we sincerely thank the jury for its service and respect the verdict it rendered,” the email continued.

“As such, we will decline to comment further at this time.”