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David Copperfield Accused Of Drugging and Assaulting Seventeen-Year-Old Model In 1988
The Wrap reports that model Brittney Lewis has accused magician David Copperfield of drugging and sexually assaulting her in 1988. She was only seventeen at the time. She claims that she took part in a modeling contest judged by Copperfield (which The Wrap has photos from). Meanwhile, her best friend from high school, husband, ex-husband and grandmother (who was her primary caregiver at the time) all said Lewis told them about the assault after it happened decades ago. A chiropractor added that Lewis told her about them three years ago. Lewis herself said she told the FBI in 2007, and added that she’s not looking to get money from Copperfield or anyone else.
Yesterday, Copperfield seemingly tried to get ahead of it with a post on Twitter, showing his support for the #MeToo movement but saying he was about to “weather another storm.”
— David Copperfield (@Copperfield) January 24, 2018
The “Look of the Year” modeling contest happened in Atami, Japan and was held by Elite Model Management in September of 1988. She said that after she went home to Utah, Copperfield invited her to one of his shows in California. Since she was a minor, Copperfield asked grandmother Patricia Burton, who was unsure about it at first. Copperfield had promised that she would have an adult with her at all times and would stay in a separate hotel room.
Burton said: “He said, ‘Don’t worry, I’ll take care of her. I believed him. He was very charming.”
Lewis went to California, but isn’t sure about the city (she thinks it was San Diego). There were two Copperfield shows in San Diego in early December 1988. Copperfield took her shopping and introduced her to his team. She said while she was flattered, she wasn’t looking for a romantic relationship. Copperfield tried to hold her hand and she turned him down, saying they were “just friends.” Copperfield used the pseudonym “Simon Templar” to check them into the hotel, the name of a character from the 1960s TV show The Saint.
Burton said: “She said it was so exciting and they treated her so nice. He pushed everyone out of the way when he escorted her.”
It got worse from there, as Lewis claimed that she saw him pour something into her glass and blacked out as his head began to move down her body. She claims that he later entered her hotel room, took off her clothes and performed sexual acts on him. He later told her that he “did not enter” her because she was “underage.”
She said: “I remember my clothes being taken off. He was kissing my face and then I remember him starting to go down on my body with his face, and then, as soon as he started going down, I just completely blacked out. He wanted to me know that nothing happened because I was underage. He said: ‘I didn’t enter you.’ There was no fluid but he could have had a condom.“
