Entertainment Movies Oscar-Winning Director Paul Haggis Has Sexual Assault Case Dismissed by Italian Court Last month, Paul Haggis was arrested in Italy on charges of sexual assault after allegedly forcing a "young woman, known by him from some time ago, to submit to sexual relations" By Shafiq Najib Shafiq Najib Shafiq Najib is a former writer-reporter at PEOPLE. He left PEOPLE in 2023. People Editorial Guidelines Published on July 31, 2022 03:34PM EDT Paul Haggis. Photo: Daniele Venturelli/Getty A sexual assault charge against Oscar-winning director Paul Haggis has been reportedly dismissed after a judge in the city of Lecce, Italy, ruled in his favor Friday. According to a statement issued by Haggis' Italian lawyer Michele Laforgia to Italian News Agency ANSA on Saturday, the judge found no basis for the court to continue investigating allegations that the Canadian director had sexual relations with an unnamed young woman without consent. If follows an application from prosecutors to continue Haggis' house arrest so that an investigation could continue, reported Variety. "After viewing the evidence and hearing arguments from both sides, the District Court of Lecce, an appellate court with three judges, unanimously rejected a prosecutor's appeal to have Haggis' house arrest reinstated," the statement read, per Variety. Haggis' representatives and attorney did not immediately return PEOPLE's request for comment. Salvatore Laporta/AP/Shutterstock Paul Haggis Praises Leah Remini for Refusing to 'Disconnect' from Him When He Left Scientology On June 20 Italian prosecutors alleged that Haggis "forced" a "young woman, known by him from some time ago, to submit to sexual relations," reported The Associated Press, via Federal News Network. Prosecutors said in their written statement that the woman was "forced to seek medical care" after the alleged incident, which they said occurred over the course of two days. Following a court hearing on July 5, Haggis, 69, was granted release from detainment after Judge Vilma Gilli of the Court of Brindisi said there was an "absence of constricting violent behavior" from him, adding that "the methods of meeting between the suspect and the offended person" were "spontaneous," per ANSA. The judge also reportedly noted "a complex story that blurs the original judgment expressed in the ordinance which had ordered house arrest for" the writer-director. Best known for writing and directing 2004's Crash, Haggis was detained in a hotel room in the city of Ostuni after the allegations were made, reported the AP. Gilli previously ordered the two-time Academy Award winner to remain in the hotel room pending further review, the outlet added. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Haggis was previously accused of rape and sexual misconduct by multiple women. In a December 2017 lawsuit, publicist Haleigh Breest claimed that after a film premiere in 2013. Haggis denied the rape allegation at the time. Director Paul Haggis Accused of Rape, Sexual Misconduct by Multiple Women The following month, three other woman came forward to Breest's attorneys. In a series of interviews with the AP, they provided details of their sexual-misconduct allegations, which allegedly stemmed from interactions they had with Haggis from 1996 through 2015, when they were still beginning their careers. One of Haggis' accusers claimed that the director and screenwriter raped her in 1996 when she was 28 years old and working as a publicist. All of the women chose to remain anonymous. In August 2018, Haggis said in a filed response that Breest's claims were "shocking and scandalous claims of fiction" which he "vehemently denies." Additionally, the director denied Breest "gave [him] oral sex" forcibly or without her consent, calling the moment consensual. Haggis also denied the claims in a statement provided to PEOPLE at the time.