Ashley And Michael Darby Say They Almost Quit RHOP After Sexual Assault Claims!

Ashley Darby and her husband Michael are breaking their silence after he was accused of sexual assault allegations. Now, the Real Housewives of Potomac couple are speaking out about the alleged incident.

As previously reported, Michael was accused of “grabbing and groping” the butt of a Bravo cameraman while filming an episode of the upcoming fourth season of the Bravo hit reality series. But charges were dismissed on October, 4 in a Montgomery County court due to insufficient evidence.

“I didn’t do it,” Michael told FOX 5 D.C. in his first interview after being accused of sexual assault, according to PEOPLE. “My name is cleared. I didn’t do anything. I’m completely exonerated, completely cleared.”

After the incident came to light, Ashley reveals that she questioned her decision of returning to the Bravo hit reality series.

“This definitely crossed a line,” said Ashley. “It didn’t jade me, but it certainly made me think twice about whether or not we made the right decision to do the show. But in the long run, I’m not going to let someone ruin Michael and I because they made some false allegation. No one is going to ruin our lives. That just won’t happen.”

Meanwhile, Michael alleged that the cameraman “saw a way to make money, he went out to tell people,” and claimed that “he quit the day after he filed charges.”

Describing the alleged incident, Michael said that he and Ashley were filming at a party at fellow Housewife Monique Samuels’ home.



“During this filming, I had to go out to take a photograph and I was inside. I moved to go out and I did bump into the cameraman — I presume it was that,” Michael told FOX 5 D.C., according to PEOPLE. “He said, ‘Don’t do that,’ and I said, ‘I’m sorry’ and I moved on. It was instantaneous because I was rushing to film.”

Ashley stayed by her husband's side and backed up Michael’s account. “I was at the incident in question,” she said. “I was literally looking at Michael when this alleged incident took place. I would have seen if something like that had happened.”

“I experienced sexual abuse as a child, so I don’t take those things lightly by any means,” Ashley added. “If I thought that my husband had done something wrong of that nature, of course I would definitely address it and I wouldn’t be supporting him as much as I am. But I know the truth.”

Despite their return to the Bravo hit reality series, Michael told FOX 5 D.C. he believes the cameraman’s claims are part of a larger issue.

“This is safety in the workplace for everybody,” he said. “We all care who is in our workplace. We have these people come into our homes. This gentleman had worked for the production company for a month. They hadn’t background checked him,” he alleged. “Even reality stars [get to] have safety and security in the workplace. So that’s a discussion we’re going to have at length with people that we work with.”

Transcript courtesy via PEOPLE

Photo Credit: Bravo