Former film producer Harvey Weinstein, who has been serving a 23-year prison sentence for sexual assault in New York since 2020, arrived in Los Angeles on Tuesday, July 20, where he will face further violence in a second trial.
Read also: Harvey Weinstein sentenced to a heavy sentence
The ex-all-powerful Hollywood mogul - whose fall is seen as a major victory for the #MeToo movement - is accused in California of rape and sexual assault on five women.
He faces up to 140 years in prison, in addition to his New York conviction.
Harvey Weinstein, 69, left Wende Prison in upstate New York shortly before 9:30 a.m. (1:30 p.m. GMT) on Tuesday before being turned over to California authorities.
"Today Harvey Weinstein was taken to Los Angeles,"
city police said on Twitter.
"After passing a medical examination, he will be taken into custody with the county sheriff."
A trial within 120 days
The lawyers of the deposed producer of the cinema had pleaded for weeks against this transfer, in particular for medical reasons.
But New York judge Kenneth Case rejected their arguments and gave the green light on June 15.
The legal procedures undertaken from Los Angeles to avoid this extradition were also unsuccessful.
"We are disappointed"
, assured a spokesperson for Harvey Weinstein to AFP, while assuring that she would continue to fight so that the ex-producer
"receives his medical treatments and of course, that he is treated fairly ”
.
Under California law, Weinstein's trial must begin within 120 days of this transfer, or by mid-November.
Read also: The Weinstein trial ends in confusion
In Los Angeles, Harvey Weinstein is notably accused of having raped a female Italian model in a Beverly Hills hotel in February 2013, then of having sexually assaulted Lauren Young, an aspiring actress, in the bathroom of another. hotel.
He has always denied the facts, in New York and Los Angeles, claiming his accusers consented.
In early April, he formally appealed his conviction for rape and sexual assault in New York, which was imposed on him in March 2020 after a resounding trial, seen as a great victory for the #MeToo movement.
In total, nearly 90 women have accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment or assault.