In a significant turn of events, Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 conviction for sex crimes was overturned by a New York appeals court on Thursday, April 26, leading to a decision for a retrial.
In a narrow 4-3 ruling, the court deemed the judge overseeing Weinstein’s trial had made “egregious” errors, particularly in allowing testimony from three other women whose accusations were not directly related to the case.
The decision, which came after Weinstein’s legal team appealed to the court, stated that the admission of testimony regarding uncharged prior sexual acts against individuals, not involved in the original charges, served no significant purpose other than prejudicing the jury against Weinstein.
Consequently, a new trial has been ordered, with Weinstein set to face a fresh round of legal proceedings with a new judge and prosecutor. However, he remains incarcerated due to a separate conviction in Los Angeles in 2022.
Harvey Weinstein’s trail in 2020?
The testimonies of Haley and Jessica Mann served as the direct basis for Weinstein’s conviction in New York. Mann claimed that Weinstein raped her in 2013 during what she described as an abusive relationship, and Haley stated that he forced her to have oral sex with him at his Manhattan apartment in 2006.
During the trial, in an attempt to establish Weinstein’s abuse history, prosecutors also called three other women witnesses of his “prior bad acts”. Weinstein allegedly took advantage of these women when they were young and aspiring to become film industry professionals by using his celebrity connections.
In 2020, the New York Court convicted him of third-degree rape and a criminal sexual act in the first degree.
How did people reacted to court’s decision?
In her tweet on X, civil rights attorney Areva Martin said, “It is a slap in the face of millions of women who have been sexually assaulted and proves the difficulty that women have in holding powerful men accountable. (sic)”
Another X user, Andrea Junker, said, “Everyone knew about the Catholic priests. Everyone knew about Donald Trump. I’m so tired of people protecting rich perverts and keeping their dark secrets for decades. So damn tired.” Fox News responded by adding, “What happened with Weinstein just reinforces to women that we don’t matter and we basically have to walk around with recording crews if we want to be believed when we get attacked.”
Maya Siegel, an activist, said, “Being a survivor of sexual violence in America is not easy; it is to exist in a system that doesn’t support you.”
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