Published , by TJ Denzer
Published , by TJ Denzer
It would appear that Justin Roiland has come out ahead on domestic abuse charges that were filed against him in 2020. The Rick and Morty co-creator, High on Life creator, and ex-Squanch Games lead was arrested for said charges in late 2020 and pled not Not Guilty, but a report of the charges earlier this year saw many companies distance themselves from Roiland. Now, the charges have been dropped by the Orange County district attorney and Roiland claims justice has been served.
Word of the charges against Roiland being dropped was reported by Polygon, as well as Roiland himself on his personal Twitter. Reportedly, the Orange County DA was forced to drop the charges due to a lack of conclusive evidence.
“[We] dismissed the charges yesterday as a result of insufficient evidence to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt,” A spokesperson for the DA office confirmed in communication with PC Gamer.
Roiland claims to feel vindicated in the decision by the DA, stating in his tweet that he had “always known that these claims were false” and was “thankful that this case has been dismissed”.
The original charges, which were filed on behalf of a client who was said to have been dating Roiland in 2020, claimed he engaged in felony domestic abuse. While the actual details were fuzzy, Roiland was arrested, released on a $50,000 bond, forced to relinquish firearms in his possession, and barred from contact or communication with the client according to court records. After the arrest and its immediate aftermath were uncovered by NBC News, Roiland was taken off of Rick and Morty at Adult Swim, Hulu (which airs Solar Opposites) cut ties with him, and he stepped down from his role as CEO of Squanch Games, which had just released High on Life.
Despite this, Roiland claims he’s “determined to move forward and focus both on my creative projects and restoring my good name.” It remains to be seen if he will be able to reintegrate into some, if any, of his previous work. Nonetheless, it seems the case against Roiland is over. Stay tuned as we continue to follow this story for any further updates.