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United StatesHarvey Weinstein’s new trial has opened in Los Angeles
Former producer Harvey Weinstein, already convicted in New York, faces charges of sexual assault and rape by five women.
Harvey Weinstein, in a Los Angeles court, October 4, 2022.
AFP
The new trial for rape and sexual assault of Harvey Weinstein, the former mogul of Hollywood, opened Monday in Los Angeles with the selection of jurors. The 70-year-old producer of “Pulp Fiction” has already been convicted in New York, where he has been serving a 23-year prison sentence since 2020 for sexual assault and rape.
This new trial coincides almost to the day with the fifth anniversary of the #MeToo movement, triggered by revelations regarding his behavior as a sexual predator. Harvey Weinstein appeared in a Los Angeles courthouse in a wheelchair on Monday, wearing a dark blue suit and light blue tie. He is due to appear there for the next two months.
Jury selection, which might span the first week, began Monday under the supervision of Judge Lisa Lench. He faces eleven counts for alleged acts committed on five women at hotels in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles between 2004 and 2013. If convicted, Harvey Weinstein – who has pleaded not guilty to all counts – might be sentenced to more than 100 additional years behind bars.
A trap”
His conviction in March 2020 in New York, followed by an immediate imprisonment and whose appeal was rejected, was a major victory for the #MeToo movement. In total, nearly 90 women including Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow and Rosanna Arquette have accused Harvey Weinstein of harassment, sexual assault, or rape.
But the statute of limitations has been exceeded in many of these cases, some of which date back to 1977. The ex-producer is also charged in the UK with sexual assaults which are believed to date back to 1996. Los Angeles under the pseudonym “Jane Doe” – figure Jennifer Siebel Newsom, wife of Democratic Governor of California Gavin Newsom, according to the “Los Angeles Times”.
“Like many other women, my client was sexually assaulted by Harvey Weinstein during an alleged business meeting which turned out to be a trap,” her lawyer, Me Elizabeth Fegan, told the newspaper. “She intends to testify during her trial in order to obtain some form of justice for the victims and to improve the condition of women,” she added.
Siebel Newsom, a film producer, previously wrote regarding Harvey Weinstein’s behavior in a 2017 essay, but did not elaborate on the alleged assaults.
Allegations
According to Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer, Me Mark Werksman, quoted by the “Los Angeles Times”, well-known personalities, seen “in films, in advertisements”, will testify during the trial. The former producer has always assured that all his accusers were consenting.
The allegations are “unproven, not credible and unsubstantiated,” Mark Werksman told reporters in July 2021, arguing that there was no forensic evidence or credible witnesses to back them up.
Harvey Weinstein’s new trial also coincides with the premiere of the film ‘She Said’, which will premiere next week at the New York Film Festival and traces the investigation by the two ‘New York Times’ reporters into the hold and wrongdoing of the almighty producer.
(AFP)