Director James Toback Won't Face Charges In 5 Sex Crime Cases

LOS ANGELES, CA — The statute of limitations expired on the sexual abuse allegations brought by five women against film director/screenwriter James Toback, Los Angeles prosecutors indicated monday. Prosecutors said they will not be bringing charges against the filmmaker.

In court documents released Monday, prosecutors indicated that Toback may have committed sexual battery, battery and indecent exposure against four women from 1978 to 2008. A fifth woman failed to show up for an interview with the District Attorney's Office. She allegedly reported an incident that happened in 2008, a time that is also beyond the statute of limitations.

Three of the women alleged that Toback rubbed his groin or penis on their legs until he ejaculated, with two indicating that they were in fear of him, according to the documents provided by the District Attorney's Office.

The other two women alleged that Toback tried to convince them to have sexual intercourse with him, with one alleging that he pushed her against a wall and then exposed himself as he drove her home and the other woman alleging that he touched her chest and buttocks over her clothing and tried to kiss her, according to the charge evaluation worksheets.

The potential cases against Toback, now 73, were forwarded to the District Attorney's Office by the Beverly Hills and Los Angeles police departments.

The Los Angeles Times reported last October that 38 women had recently emerged to report years of alleged perverted and creepy behavior by Toback, who was nominated for an Oscar in 1991 for penning the "Bugsy" screenplay and whose directing credits include "The Pick-up Artist," "Two Girls and a Guy" and "Black & White."

The newspaper spoke to the women about the allegations, with 31 speaking on the record.

Toback's alleged pattern involved prowling the streets of Manhattan looking for attractive young women, usually in their early 20s, sometimes college students and on occasion a high schooler, The Times reported. He allegedly approached them in Central Park, standing in line at a bank or drug store or at a copy center while they worked on their resumes. His opening line had a few variations, according to The Times. One allegedly went: "My name's James Toback. I'm a movie director. Have you ever seen `Black and White' or `Two Girls and a Guy'?"

He'd tell women he could make them a star, then, in a hotel room or a public park, meetings framed as interviews or auditions quickly turned sexual, the 38 women alleged in separate interviews with The Times. He'd then rub himself against them or masturbate in front of them, ejaculating into his pants or onto their bodies, then walk away, The Times alleged.

None of the women contacted the police at the time.

When contacted by the newspaper, Toback denied the allegations, saying that he had never met any of the women or, if he did, it "was for five minutes" and he doesn't remember the encounters. He also repeatedly claimed that for the last 22 years, it had been "biologically impossible" for him to engage in the behavior described by the women interviewed by The Times, saying he had diabetes and a heart condition that required medication.

City News Service; Photo: James Toback attends the 'The Private Life Of A Modern Woman' photocall during the 74th Venice Film Festival at Sala Casino on September 3, 2017 in Venice, Italy. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)