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 Once one of Hollywood’s most powerful producers, Weinstein, 67,
has pleaded not guilty to charges of assaulting two women in New
York. He faces life in prison if convicted on the most serious
charge, predatory sexual assault.
One of the women, former production assistant Mimi Haleyi, has
said that Weinstein sexually assaulted her in 2006. Prosecutors
say Weinstein raped the second woman, who has not been publicly
identified, in 2013.
In all, more than 80 women have accused Weinstein of sexual
misconduct dating back decades.
Those accusations helped fuel the #MeToo movement, in which
hundreds of women have publicly accused powerful men in
business, politics, the news media and entertainment of sexual
harassment or assault.
Weinstein has denied the allegations, saying any sexual
encounters he had were consensual.
Jury selection in the case, which will take place in state court
in Manhattan, is expected to begin on Tuesday following a
pretrial conference on Monday, according to Danny Frost, a
spokesman for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, whose
office brought the charges.
The trial will hang over the Hollywood awards season, which
began with Sunday's Golden Globes. Weinstein was once a fixture
at the industry's glitzy ceremonies, with numerous critically
acclaimed small-budget films such as "Shakespeare in Love,”
which won the Oscar for best picture in 1999.
"First and foremost, this trial is important for the dozens of
women who have experienced sexual assault or harassment at the
hands of Harvey Weinstein," said Tina Tchen, the president of
Time's Up Foundation, which was founded in the wake of the
Weinstein allegations.
Juda Engelmayer, a spokesman for Weinstein, said on Thursday
that the two women in the criminal case had long-term
relationships with Weinstein. He said it was prejudicial to
conflate the criminal matter with allegations in civil cases or
with public grievances he said were lodged by women who were not
part of any lawsuit.
Allegations against Weinstein first were reported in the New
York Times and The New Yorker magazine in October 2017.
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Within days, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which
selects Oscar winners, had expelled Weinstein. On Oct. 15, Alyssa
Milano tweeted: "If you've ever been sexually harassed or assaulted
write 'me too' as a reply to this tweet."
#MeToo became one of the most used widely used hashtags. In 2019 it
was viewed 42 billion times, according to data from Brandwatch, a
research firm.
Finding impartial New York City jurors amid the media frenzy
surrounding the Weinstein case will be a challenge for both legal
teams, experts said.
Lawyers will likely question potential jurors about their knowledge
and opinion of the case, their work history and whether they have
been victims of sexual misconduct.
If Weinstein is acquitted, he is still likely to face legal
problems. At least 29 women in the United States, Canada and Europe
have brought civil claims against him. The allegations in the civil
lawsuits range from battery, assault and defamation to sex
trafficking and racketeering. He has denied the allegations.
The parties have been trying to work out a $25 million settlement to
resolve most of the civil cases. The deal would not require
Weinstein to contribute personally or to admit wrongdoing, prompting
at least one woman to reject the proposal.
The settlement of the civil cases must be approved by a federal
judge in Manhattan and a bankruptcy judge in Delaware.
The film company Weinstein founded with his brother Bob, The
Weinstein Co, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2018.
(Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; Additional reporting
by Brendan Pierson in New York and Jill Serjeant in Los Angeles;
Writing by Tom Hals; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Jonathan Oatis
and Chizu Nomiyama)
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