Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 16 years in jail for rape in Los Angeles

By Phil Helsel and Diana Dasrath —

Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein was sentenced Thursday to 16 years in prison for rape in Los Angeles, a sentence that adds to the sentence of more than 23 years already handed down three years ago in New York also for sexual crimes.

Weinstein, 70, was found guilty in December by a jury of three counts related to the accuser known as Jane Doe 1: forcible rape, forced oral copulation and sexual penetration with a foreign object.

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The jury cleared him of the charges against another woman, also anonymously identified as Jane Doe 2;

and was unable to reach a verdict on the charges relating to Jane Doe 3 and Jane Doe 4.

Attorney Gloria Allred filed a motion Tuesday on behalf of the three women after the judge denied them the ability to read pre-sentencing statements.

The lawyer assured that this decision violates the rights of women under the Marsy Law, which grants that right to those who suffer direct harm or threat of harm due to a crime.

Weinstein faced a possible sentence of up to 24 years in the Los Angeles case, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said.

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Weinstein's legal team filed an appeal requesting a new trial, arguing that evidence about a romantic relationship between Stranger 1 and a witness that could have altered the jury's decision was excluded.

Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench denied Weinstein's request for a new trial.

Weinstein is currently serving a 23-year sentence in a rape case that was considered a landmark trial of the #MeToo movement.

In that case, he was convicted in New York in 2020 of third-degree rape and first-degree criminal sex act for crimes against two women, one an aspiring actress and the other a production assistant for Project

.

He is pending an appeal.

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Weinstein pleaded not guilty in both trials and has denied all allegations of non-consensual sex.

At both trials, Weinstein waived his right to take the witness stand.

In the 1990s and 2000s, Weinstein and his younger brother, Bob, were titans of the movie business, producing formative films like

, and Oscar-winning dramas like

and

.

In 2017, The New York Times and The New Yorker published explosive investigations into allegations of a pattern of sexual misconduct by Harvey Weinstein.

The stories inspired a broader reflection on abuses of power and sexual harassment in the workplace that became widely known as the #MeToo movement.