Woody Allen daughter renews sex abuse allegations

In an open letter to The New York Times posted online, Ms Farrow made her first public comments about the 1992 incident, telling columnist Nicholas Kristof that Allen “got away with what he did” and it “haunted” her.

Ms Farrow, 28, said she was led to comment after Allen was recently honoured with a Golden Globes lifetime achievement award and said Hollywood’s continued embrace of Allen worsened her torment.

Allen was investigated for child molestation but was never charged. However, the investigating prosecutor said there was “probable cause”.

Representatives for Allen did not immediately return requests for comment.

“That he got away with what he did to me haunted me as I grew up,” Ms Farrow wrote. “I was stricken with guilt that I had allowed him to be near other little girls.”

Allen has long maintained his innocence.

In the letter, Ms Farrow claims that in 1992 at the family’s Connecticut home, Allen led her to a “dim, closet-like attic” and “then he sexually assaulted me”. She did not give specifics of Allen’s actions but described other abusive behaviour.

She said: “For as long as I could remember, my father had been doing things to me that I didn’t like,” she said. “These things happened so often, so routinely, so skilfully hidden from a mother that would have protected me had she known, that I thought it was normal.”

The handling of the investigation into Ms Farrow’s claims was criticised after Litchfield County state attorney Frank Maco told a press conference there was “probable cause” to charge Allen, although he chose not to.

A disciplinary panel found Mr Maco may have prejudiced the then-continuing custody battle between Allen and partner Mia Farrow by making an accusation without formal charges. The 1992 allegation came shortly after Allen, then in his mid-50s, became involved with Mia Farrow’s adopted daughter Soon-Yi Previn.