Prince Andrew stripped of royal patronages and military affiliations as sex abuse lawsuit moves ahead

Britain’s Prince Andrew has been stripped of all royal patronage and military affiliations, with the approval of the queen. The announcement came a day after US District Judge Rejected Andrew’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Virginia Giuffre, alleging that he sexually abused her when she was 17 years old.

“The Duke of York will continue to not assume any public function and is defending this case as a private citizen,” a Buckingham Palace spokesman said on Thursday.

All of her formal roles have been returned to Queen Elizabeth and will be redistributed to other members of the royal family, according to a royal source. He will no longer use “His Royal Highness” in any official capacity.

Andrew’s attorneys had argued that the lawsuit that now goes on must be discarded due to a 2009 agreement that Guiffre signed with a convicted sex offender jeffrey epstein. Judge Lewis Kaplan said the 2009 settlement “cannot be seen” to benefit Andrew.

Andrew may decide to fight the case in court, but given the negative light on that process, it would shine. His family, most analysts see it as highly unlikely. As a UK resident, you could also simply refuse to cooperate with a lawsuit if it goes ahead, but that tactic could be disastrous.

The prince’s best option, said Rikki Klieman, a CBS News legal analyst, is to try to settle out of court with Giuffre to prevent the case from going to trial. But Giuffre would have to agree to that option, and she has indicated no inclination to do so.

On Friday, Giuffre said in a tweet that she was “pleased” with the judge’s ruling, as it would give her “the opportunity to continue exposing the truth.”

“My goal has always been to show that the rich and powerful are not above the law and must be held accountable,” he said in the tweets, which included a thank you to his legal team and a message of solidarity with the “countless survivors of abuse. sex and trafficking ”.

Giuffre, who claims the prince sexually assaulted her multiple times as a teenager, told CBS News in 2020 that Andrew “should be panicking” and that royalty “should be held accountable.”

Prince Andrew denies all the allegations and has never been charged with any crime. He claims not to remember meeting Giuffre, even though the two were photographed together when Giuffre was a teenager. Epstein’s ex-girlfriend, ghislaine maxwellIn the same photo appears, who was convicted in December of grooming and trafficking of minors for sexual abuse.

Once regarded as a handsome playboy prince, Andrew’s name is now indelibly tainted by his friendships with convicted sex offenders Epstein and Maxwell.