Michael Darby denied sexual misconduct claims against Andy Cohen. There was more than one misconduct claim that the restaurateur had to address during the reunion special of The Real Housewives of Potomac.
Michael Darby, who is married to Ashely Darby, was accused by a former Bravo cameraman of having “grabbed and groped” his butt while filming the past season. The real estate mogul had always denied that the incident happened, even appearing on Fox Five to say his piece. He was charged with felony assault with a misdemeanor for improper sexual contact, but the charges were dismissed by the Montgomery County court due to insufficient evidence.
The third and final installment of The Real Housewives of Potomac recently aired, and it seemed that host Andy Cohen wanted to focus on Ashley Darby’s husband’s accusations. Season 4 showed Michael Darby’s battle against allegations that he sexually assaulted a cameraman. While the show had exclusive clips of the alleged run-ins, Michael maintained his innocence as his wife Ashley stood by him. All of the husbands took to the stage to give their opinion on the season, with Ray Huger dropping a bombshell on viewers that Michael had touched Andy Cohen’s butt at the last reunion. Huger said that he had seen the incident with his own eyes but that both Michael and Andy laughed. This was the only lighthearted moment of part three as even Andy said he was probably “fine with it.” The rest of the cast did not take lightly to the sexual misconduct claims against Michael as most of the cast believed he was and still is guilty.
The Darbys had been the talk of the season after the rainbow party episode that took place at Monique’s Samuel’s house. The point of the day was to celebrate Monique’s pregnancy after the loss of her last baby, but the day quickly took a turn as Michael seemed to have been caught groping a crewman’s butt. The film clip that was aired showed the outside guests with the audio of Michael’s voice apologizing profusely when the cameraman told him “not to do that.” The 60-year-old Australian native tried to defend himself by saying that Australians are much friendlier than Americans. The women were quick to interject saying that this was not the first time they had seen or been told that he had touched someone inappropriately. Each one of the housewives brought up additional claims while Gizelle Bryant and Robyn Dixon disclosed that they both had been told by producers in years past that Michael had touched other male staff members. The incidents were said to have taken place during the show’s first season, which aired in 2016.
Michael’s appearance on the reunion did not do much to sway the cast’s belief that he was guilty of the accusations. Michael left the stage telling the housewives and their husbands that they should all be ashamed of themselves for believing the rumors. No matter how hard Michael pushed back, the ladies were steadfast in their doubts, with Karen Huger saying, “A question mark still remains.”
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Source: The Real Housewives of Potomac
