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Justin Roiland, the co-creator of Adult Swim’s Rick and Morty, has been cleared of domestic violence charges, according to a statement from the Orange County District Attorney’s office. Variety was first to report.
The charges were dismissed due to insufficient evidence to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt. Roiland pleaded not guilty to one count of domestic battery with corporal injury and one count of false imprisonment by menace, violence, fraud, and/or deceit in 2020. He appeared in court in January for a pre-trial hearing, and a second pre-trial hearing was scheduled for April 27.
Roiland responded to the dropped charges on social media, saying he was thankful the case had been dismissed but was still “deeply shaken by the horrible lies that were reported about me during this process.” He also expressed disappointment that so many people were quick to judge him based solely on the word of someone he referred to as “an embittered ex.” Adult Swim severed ties with Roiland in January due to the domestic violence charges, and Roiland resigned from Squanch Games, the video game developer studio he co-founded in 2016. Hulu similarly dropped him from both Solar Opposites and Koala Man.
Despite Roiland’s statement, there were still numerous other allegations against him. After this case came to light, additional individuals made allegations of mistreatment at the hands of Roiland, including one Twitter user who wished to remain anonymous and claimed that Roiland joked with them, while they were underage, about being enslaved for sex.
Additionally, the Orange County District Attorney’s office’s ruling did not rule for Roiland’s innocence–only that there was not enough evidence to prove the case either way.
