Celebrity chef Mario Batali is acquitted

BOSTON (AP) — Mario Batali was found not guilty of indecent assault and battery on Tuesday, following a swift trial in which the celebrity

chef waived his right to have a jury decide

his fate in a criminal case that arose from the global #Metoo

movement against sexual abuse and harassment.

The 61-year-old former Food Network personality quickly

strode out of the courtroom with his lawyers without commenting

on the case, which centered on allegations that he aggressively kissed and groped a

Boston woman while taking a selfie at a bar in 2017.

In delivering the verdict, Boston Municipal Court Judge James

Stanton agreed with Batali's lawyers that the accuser had credibility issues and that photos

suggested the encounter was amicable.

"Pictures are worth a thousand words," he said.

But the judge also rebuked Batali while suggesting the former star of shows like "Molto Mario" and "Iron Chef America" has already paid "a high cost" in terms of his diminished reputation and financial losses.

"It's an understatement to say that Mr. Batali did not cover himself in glory on the night in question,"

Stanton said after prosecutors argued he was visibly drunk in the photos. "His conduct,

his appearance and his demeanor were not befitting of a public person of his stature at that time."

Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said he was

disappointed in the verdict but grateful

Batali's accuser had come forward.

"It can be incredibly difficult for a victim to disclose a sexual assault," he said in a statement. "When the individual who committed such an abhorrent act is in a position

of power or celebrity, the decision to report an assault can become all the more challenging and intimidating."

Batali, who pleaded not guilty to indecent assault and battery in 2019, took a calculated gamble that Stanton, a former Republican

candidate for state representative appointed to the bench by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker, would rule more favorably than a Boston jury.

Seeking a non-jury, or bench trial, is often a strategy employed when a defendant can

come across as unlikeable to jurors.

Batali faced up to 2 1/2 years in jail and would've been required to register as a

sex offender if convicted.