Seal won't be charged with sexual assault, authorities say
A woman claimed that he'd acted inappropriately toward her in November 2016.
— -- Singer Seal will not face criminal charges stemming from an allegation of sexual assault, ABC News has confirmed.
According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, a woman, the singer's neighbor, claimed that two years ago, after she stopped by his house to retrieve a salad spinner, he'd lunged at her, grabbed her breasts and tried to kiss her.
She reported the alleged crime earlier this year, after Oprah Winfrey's stirring speech at the Golden Globes in January.
However, because of the delay in reporting the incident, the statute of limitations has run its course, the D.A.'s office noted, adding that the lack of witnesses or evidence to corroborate her claim would have made it difficult to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.
A representative for Seal had no comment when reached by ABC News.
Last month, Seal, 54, "vehemently" denied the allegations made against him, and according to his publicist, intended to "vigorously defend himself against these false allegations." Prior to the allegation being made, the singer said in a video posted to social media that he applauded women who had spoken out about sexual misconduct.
"To all of you who have been raped, to all of you who have been sexually abused: I applaud you for coming forward. What you did takes real courage," he said. "Please keep coming forward because that's the only way that we get to solve this thing. We talk about it, we open dialogue, we solve it."
