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Weinstein, 69, arrived at Los Angeles Superior
Court for his first appearance there in a wheelchair, wearing a
brown jail uniform, after being extradited from New York on
Tuesday where he was serving 23 years in prison for rape and
other sexual offenses.
Weinstein has denied having nonconsensual sex with anyone and is
appealing his 2020 New York conviction and sentence.
In Los Angeles, he faces 11 charges of attacking five women
between 2004 to 2013. They include forcible rape, forcible oral
copulation, sexual battery by restraint, and sexual penetration
by use of force. If convicted, Weinstein could spend the rest of
his life in prison.
Weinstein's lawyer said there was no forensic evidence or
credible witnesses to the allegations.
"They are baseless, they are from long, long ago, they are
uncorroborated," Mark Werksman told reporters outside the
courthouse.
"We are confident that if we can have a fair trial in this case
that Mr Weinstein will be acquitted," Werksman said.
After entering his not guilty plea through his attorney on
Wednesday, Weinstein was ordered to remain in jail until the
next hearing on July 29.
Werksman said he was seeking dismissal of three charges relating
to 2004 and 2005 on the grounds that the 10 year statute of
limitations in California has expired.
Weinstein, once one of the most powerful men in Hollywood, is
accused of raping two women at hotels in Beverly Hills on
separate occasions, and with sexually assaulting three other
women in the Beverly Hills or Los Angeles areas, according to
the charges.
He had been fighting extradition on medical grounds. Werksman
said he was going blind in one eye and that he was unable to
walk because of back problems.
More than 80 women have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct
going back decades but only a handful of the allegations have
resulted in criminal charges.
He co-founded the Miramax film studio, whose hit movies included
"Shakespeare in Love" and "Pulp Fiction." His film studio filed
for bankruptcy in March 2018.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; additional reporting by Lisa
Richwine: Editing by Grant McCool)
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