[ad_1]
Topline
Disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein appealed his conviction for rape and criminal sexual acts Monday after being sentenced to 23 years in prison, claiming he was unfairly convicted due to how he was portrayed in the media and alleging issues with his jury trial.
Movie producer Harvey Weinstein enters New York City Criminal Court on February 24, 2020 in New York … [+]
Key Facts
Weinstein was found guilty in February 2020 of first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape based on two women’s allegations against him—but was acquitted of some other more severe charges, including predatory sexual assault and first-degree rape—after women testified about being sexually assaulted by the film producer.
The trial included testimony from multiple women who were not named in the court case, which Weinstein’s attorneys alleged unfairly broadened the case beyond the specific charges in the lawsuit, saying “the prosecution tried Weinstein’s character, not his conduct.”
The appeal filing alleged Weinstein’s conviction was unfairly tainted by the media’s portrayal of Weinstein and the outsized attention the allegations against him had drawn in the press, claiming the case against him was “based on uncharged, salacious allegations and improper expert testimony.”
Weinstein’s attorneys also took issue with a juror in the trial who wrote a book about “predatory older men.”
In a statement to ABC News, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance’s office, which brought the case against Weinstein, said they would “respond in our brief to the court.”
Crucial Quote
“Sadly for Mr. Weinstein, the trial court’s sentence reflects not on Mr. Weinstein, the man, and the conduct for which he was convicted, but on Mr. Weinstein the media villain,” Weinstein’s lawyers argued in the appeal.
What To Watch For
Weinstein is also facing pending legal action in Los Angeles, where he faces 11 felony charges based on allegations from five women that took place between 2004 and 2013. Los Angeles prosecutors have asked for Weinstein to be temporarily extradited to the city from New York to face those charges, and an extradition hearing is slated to take place this month.
Big Number
At least 100. That’s how many women have made allegations against Weinstein, according to a list compiled by New York Magazine. (Weinstein has broadly denied the allegations against him.)
Key Background
Sexual assault allegations against Weinstein, then one of Hollywood’s most influential moguls, were first reported in Oct. 2017 by the New York Times and New Yorker, kicking off the #MeToo movement and a flood of sexual misconduct allegations against powerful men. The charges at the heart of the New York case against Weinstein were brought by accusers Miriam Haley and Jessica Mann, who alleged Weinstein violently raped her at a New York hotel in 2013. Haley, whose allegations were the basis of the criminal sex act charge, alleged Weinstein forcibly performed oral sex on her at his New York City apartment in 2006.
Tangent
In addition to the criminal cases against Weinstein in New York and Los Angeles, Weinstein’s accusers have also reached several settlement deals with the former mogul. A $18.8 million settlement was reached in New York in July 2020 in lawsuits including a class action lawsuit brought by Weinstein’s accusers, and a separate $17 million agreement was reached in Delaware in January that affects approximately 40 of Weinstein’s accusers.
Further Reading
Harvey Weinstein Appeals Sex Crimes Conviction Over Accusers’ Testimony (New York Times)
Harvey Weinstein appeals rape conviction, attorneys raise questions about juror (ABC News)
Harvey Weinstein Found Guilty In Sexual Assault Trial, Already Filing Appeal (Forbes)
Harvey Weinstein Accusers Reach Nearly $19 Million Settlement (Forbes)
[ad_2]