Kevin Clash, the voice behind Elmo on "Sesame Street," has been cleared of all sex abuse charges.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a July 2013 ruling dismissing the case due to the statue of limitations.
Clash, 53, worked on the show for 28 years but left in 2012 after allegations from three men became public.
The accusers all filed lawsuits claiming they were sexually abused by Clash over a period of ten years, but a New York judge said the claims came too late. The state's statue of limitations requires that a lawsuit is filed within six years of the event or three years after the plaintiff turns 21.
Sheldon Stephens was the first accuser to publicly speak about the allegations. Though he said he had an "adult consensual relationship" with Clash, he filed a suit in 2013 claiming Clash threw him a crystal meth sex party in 2004, when he was 16-years-old.
Clash continually denied the claims and argued every relationship he had was consensual.
"I am a gay man," he said in a statement in November 2012. "I have never been ashamed of this or tried to hide it, but felt it was a personal and private matter."
Later that month, he released a statement about resigning from "Sesame Street."
"I am resigning from Sesame Workshop with a very heavy heart. I have loved every day of my 28 years working for this exceptional organization. Personal matters have diverted attention away from the important work Sesame Street is doing and I cannot allow it to go on any longer. I am deeply sorry to be leaving and am looking forward to resolving these personal matters privately," the statement read.
Clash did not return a call from CNN to comment on the tossed suits.
