LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — A judge has dismissed a charge of sex abuse against the owner of a Lexington barbecue restaurant after a jury found him not guilty on a related charge.
Police arrested 55-year-old Willie Talley, owner of Talley’s BBQ, on June 20, 2018.
Authorities charged Talley with third-degree sexual abuse and sex offender filming, photographing or videotaping a minor without consent. Talley is listed in the state sex offender registry for two counts of third-degree rape involving a 15-year-old.
In April, a jury in federal district court in Frankfort found Talley not guilty of the filming charge, and a week later the judge threw out the sexual abuse charge.
“The charges against Chef Talley, other than his having kissed the alleged victim once, were the result of the alleged victim’s falsely attributing to Chef Talley certain conduct of her other acquaintances toward her of a sexual nature,” Talley’s attorney, Philip C. Kimball, said in a statement.
