Grand Jury Decides Against Indicting `Frasier’ Star

A grand jury in Somerset County, N.J., Friday refused to indict “Frasier” and “Cheers” star Kelsey Grammer, 39, on charges that he had sex with a 15-year-old girl who was baby-sitting his daughter during a trip to New Jersey two years ago.

“This ends the case in New Jersey,” prosecutor Nicholas L. Bissell Jr. said. The decision also means that, at least in New Jersey, the tapes of voice-mail messages that Grammer allegedly left for the girl at her Arizona home will not be released.

The lawyer for the girl and her family, John C. Esposito, said in an interview this month: “Any reasonable person would conclude from both the tone, the language, and the general intimacy of the messages that something very, very wrong was occurring.”

But the grand jury, which listened to the tapes, apparently disagreed. Its members also heard testimony from the girl, now 17, but Grammer himself did not appear.

The girl alleged that she and Grammer had first had sex when he visited her stepmother in Somerset County to discuss a business venture. During the visit, the stepmother suggested the girl baby-sit Grammer’s 9-year-old daughter at his hotel.

Arizona authorities said Friday they would discuss the matter with prosecutors in New Jersey. The girl also has alleged the two had sex in Sedona, a resort north of Phoenix.