Posted on June 5, 2014

Man Who V. Stiviano Accused of Vicious Race Attack Has Hate Crime Charges Dropped and Is Released Without Bail

Daily Mail (London), June 4, 2014

The 40-year-old man accused of attacking V. Stiviano in a racist assault which left her face severely bruised intends to deny the charges, his lawyer has said.

Dominick Diorio made a brief court appearance on Wednesday and was released without bail.

Dominick Diorio

Dominick Diorio

He did not speak to waiting reporters but his attorney David Scott Smith said he expects the allegations to ‘begin to fail’ as soon as they are examined with more scrutiny.

He went on to accuse Stiviano of inventing the attack in order to gain publicity or to ‘keep her name in the spotlight’.

‘Simply put, a credible victim of a crime does not have her attorney call the press before she calls the police,’ said Smith.

‘Miss Stiviano seems intent on keeping her name in the spotlight. But I can assure you if this case goes to trial, my cross-examination will last longer than her 15 minutes of fame.’

Pictures which V. Stiviano claims are proof she was assaulted in New York City were released yesterday by MailOnline.

The images allegedly show extensive bruising across the right side of the 31-year-old’s face.

V. Stiviano

V. Stiviano

In one photograph, taken after Sunday’s alleged assault outside the Gansevoort Hotel, a stunned looking Stiviano has what appears to be a huge florid mark burgeoning from her eye down to her chin.

In the other, which was presumably taken the day after, Stiviano’s face seems to be painfully swollen, especially around her cheek.

Even though she is wearing make-up in one of the photographs, the effects of the alleged attack appear to be visible.

Diorio, of Old Bethpage, Long Island, appeared in Manhattan Criminal Court for his arraignment.

He was initially changed with assault and a hate crime but these charges were reduced to assault in the hearing.

Diorio’s attorney, David Scott Smith, told The New York Post that he is pleased the hate crime charges have been dropped.

‘I’d like to commend the District Attorney’s Office for deciding not to prosecute my client for a hate crime and to consent to his release without bail,’ said Smith.

‘I’m confident that as this case goes forward and the investigation continues, that Miss Stiviano’s allegations will likewise begin to fail and at the end of the day, the assault charge will be dismissed as well.’

Diorio, who was reportedly celebrating his 40th birthday before the alleged run-in with Stiviano, appeared to have a small amount of bruising on his face.

He allegedly told investigators he just ‘slipped and fell’ after a woman threw a phone at him.

However, Stiviano offers an alternative explanation for his injuries.

She claims he and another man allegedly hurled racist abuse at her during a random attack on Sunday evening.

She claims their slurs included the N-word.