United States: Harvey Weinstein found guilty in Los Angeles of three sexual assaults

Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein was found guilty on Monday (December 19th) of rape and two sexual assaults at the end of his trial in Los Angeles, almost half of the charges on which he was prosecuted. by four women.

After two weeks of deliberation, the jurors found him guilty on all charges brought by the first of the four accusers.

They found him not guilty on the charges of a second woman, and did not issue a verdict on the allegations made by the other two.

The 70-year-old former "king" of cinema, who produced award-winning hits like "Pulp Fiction" or "The Artist", was previously sentenced in New York in 2020 to 23 years in prison for similar acts.

Four victims testified

During this new trial, four women testifying anonymously accused the producer in great detail of forcing them to have sex in hotels in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles between 2004 and 2013. A fifth ultimately refused to testify .

After weeks of harrowing hearings, often interrupted by sobbing plaintiffs, the prosecution has painted Harvey Weinstein as an all-powerful ogre, whose stranglehold on Hollywood, the films he produced have received more than 330 Oscar nominations and 81 statuettes, has long prevented his victims from speaking, for fear of repercussions on their careers.

In a gray suit on Monday, the former movie giant buried his head in his hands as the convictions were handed down.

After this verdict, a judge must still decide on the sentence of Harvey Weinstein.

For the three counts of which he was found guilty, the septuagenarian faces a sentence of up to 18 years in prison.

A maximum which could be increased to 24 years, depending on certain aggravating circumstances on which the jury must still decide.

On appeal in New York 

The verdict of this new trial in Los Angeles was particularly important for the ex-producer.

Because after an initial refusal of justice, the New York Supreme Court finally authorized him in August to appeal his 2020 conviction, an initial decision which had been a major victory for the #MeToo movement.

Combative, his defense systematically questioned the word of the four accusers during the trial and insisted on the lack of material evidence and forensic elements.

"Tears don't tell the truth," said Alan Jackson, one of the producer's lawyers, castigating a charge that "relies entirely" on the will of the jury to believe the plaintiffs.

sow doubt

Harvey Weinstein's defense had particularly incriminated Jennifer Siebel-Newsom, the wife of California Governor Gavin Newsom, who revealed her identity during the trial.

According to the defense, she had a relationship granted in exchange for favors in Hollywood, which she later regretted and turned into accusations, riding the avalanche of revelations aimed at the producer at the start of the #MeToo movement in 2017.

An argument that instilled doubt in the jurors: Jennifer Siebel-Newsom is one of the two women for whom they have not pronounced a verdict.

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 dating back to 1977. The ex-producer is also charged in the United Kingdom with sexual assaults which date back to 1996.

With AFP

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