New Delhi:
A masseur who accused John Travolta of sexual assault is willing to drop his federal proceedings against the star. The unnamed man - who is known as John Doe #2 - is willing to have the matter settled in a private trial, though no deal has yet been agreed with the actor's legal representative Marty Singer.
The masseur's lawyer Okorie Okorocha told the New York Daily News newspaper: "I can dismiss the federal filing and we can set up our own private trial. I'm willing to do that, and I've proposed that to Marty Singer. [Singer] hasn't agreed, but he hasn't said no. We are speaking, but we haven't hammered something out. He wants to fight this thing all the way through. They've made it clear. I'm ready to fight. I might leave in a bodybag, but never in cuffs. It would be a great case to see on Court TV, to see the royal rumble."
The lawyer believes a private trial would be much faster than public proceedings and maintain the privacy of his client - the second man to have stepped forward to have made accusations against the Pulp Fiction star - who he describes as a "reserved" family man.
However, he also admitted arbitration could be a "gamble" as such cases often conclude with technical decisions that "neither side likes".
He added: "All I've cared about from the beginning is my client's anonymity. If we did pick a private trial, the biggest issue is going to be who the judge or judges are. That could be a deal breaker that could send this to a public trial."
Okorie thinks it is important to maintain privacy in such a case, and insisted he isn't willing to go to mediation with the star and his legal team.
He told People: "I want a full trial with a private judge. There is no mediation. There'll never be a settlement. I want privacy for sex crime victims."
Last week, Okorie dropped the first masseur who made allegations against John as a client after the accuser - known only as John Doe # 1 - admitted he had got the dates of the alleged assault wrong. John has denied all the allegations against him.
The masseur's lawyer Okorie Okorocha told the New York Daily News newspaper: "I can dismiss the federal filing and we can set up our own private trial. I'm willing to do that, and I've proposed that to Marty Singer. [Singer] hasn't agreed, but he hasn't said no. We are speaking, but we haven't hammered something out. He wants to fight this thing all the way through. They've made it clear. I'm ready to fight. I might leave in a bodybag, but never in cuffs. It would be a great case to see on Court TV, to see the royal rumble."
The lawyer believes a private trial would be much faster than public proceedings and maintain the privacy of his client - the second man to have stepped forward to have made accusations against the Pulp Fiction star - who he describes as a "reserved" family man.
However, he also admitted arbitration could be a "gamble" as such cases often conclude with technical decisions that "neither side likes".
He added: "All I've cared about from the beginning is my client's anonymity. If we did pick a private trial, the biggest issue is going to be who the judge or judges are. That could be a deal breaker that could send this to a public trial."
Okorie thinks it is important to maintain privacy in such a case, and insisted he isn't willing to go to mediation with the star and his legal team.
He told People: "I want a full trial with a private judge. There is no mediation. There'll never be a settlement. I want privacy for sex crime victims."
Last week, Okorie dropped the first masseur who made allegations against John as a client after the accuser - known only as John Doe # 1 - admitted he had got the dates of the alleged assault wrong. John has denied all the allegations against him.
