Longtime Four Seasons Co-Owner Julian Niccolini Pleads Guilty To Young Woman's Assault

Julian Niccolini, the co-owner and managing partner of New York City's historic Four Seasons restaurant, has pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor assault of a young woman he met during a party last May.

Niccolini, then 62, was arrested in June 2015 after a 28-year-old woman accused him of sexually assaulting her during a party at the restaurant.

Reports at the time indicated that Niccolini allegedly groped the woman and attempted to remove several items of clothing against her will. The woman told detectives that she repeatedly asked him to stop and was physically unable to escape his grasp.

A Manhattan prosecutor also described "significant scratch marks on her back and bruising on her hip" as a result of the encounter.

In court on Thursday, March 24, Niccolini pleaded guilty to assault, down from a felony sexual assault charge, and admitted that he had put his hands on the woman and caused her bruises. A judge sentenced Niccolini to a conditional discharge, meaning that he will not serve any time unless he breaks the law in the next 12 months.