Harvey Weinstein’s Trial in Los Angeles This Week “A Win for #Metoo Move”

Harvey Weistein

Harvey Weinstein’s second trial begins this week in a Los Angeles courtroom, in a case that is expected to be larger and more difficult than his previous trial in New York. The trial might take up to two months, with Weinstein facing testimony from nine sexual assault allegations, up from six in New York.

Tomorrow, Harvey Weinstein’s LA rape trial begins. Will the media cover this trial?

Jury selection begins on Monday and will likely last at least two weeks as both sides attempt to screen out jurors who may be swayed by pre-trial publicity.

Weinstein was extradited to California last year to face 11 more sexual assault charges stemming from alleged crimes between 2004 and 2013, including forcible rape, forceful oral copulation, sexual violence by constraint, and sexual penetration by force.

While Weinstein is likely to spend the rest of his life in prison, Jamie White, an attorney who has represented survivors of Larry Nassar, the USA Gymnastics doctor whose serial sexual abuse of girls and young women has rocked the gymnastics world, said it was critical that all victims be held accountable.

“These victims deserve accountability,” he said. “It’s the accountability we expect our public servants to come forward with when there is a victim involved.”

Weinstein is already serving a 23-year term for rape and sexual assault after being convicted two years ago. The New York Court of Appeals has agreed to hear his case, but a conviction in Los Angeles – where he faces up to 140 years in prison – might essentially ensure that he never walks free.

It’s been half a decade since the initial revelations of the widespread claims against Weinstein ignited a movement, encouraging women worldwide to come out about the abuse they’ve suffered at the hands of prominent men. He is on trial again!

In 2017, the #MeToo movement gained momentum after the New York Times, and the New Yorker published articles detailing Weinstein’s long history of sexual misconduct, including accounts from actors like Ashley Judd.

There had been rumors about the movie mogul’s behavior for a while now; after all, his studio was responsible for hits like Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love. However, the stories revealed how Weinstein’s legal team, private investigators, and paid advisers, including actors and production assistants, worked to silence his accusers.

Within a few short weeks following the first allegations, approximately ninety women accused Weinstein of inappropriate behavior and sexual abuse dating back to the 1970s.

Annabella Sciorra, who played Carmela Soprano on The Sopranos, claims that Harvey Weinstein raped her in the early 1990s, making his trial in New York in 2020 on charges of raping two women a watershed event in the #MeToo movement.

Forcing oral sex on former Project Runway production assistant Miriam Haley, the jury found Weinstein guilty of rape in the third degree and a criminal sex act in the first degree. He was given a life sentence plus 23 years by the court.

Nevertheless, Weinstein, who is now 70 years old, has always claimed innocence. The recent appeal of his New York conviction was denied by a panel of five judges. The highest court in the state, however, has agreed to hear Weinstein’s appeal of the verdict.

Want to read more about Weinstein’s rapes and assaults on film actresses and his Los Angeles trials? Let us know!

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The time of Weinstein’s trial in Los Angeles is pivotal for the #MeToo movement. This is one of many U.S. trials this month, including ones involving actors Kevin Spacey and Danny Masterson and filmmaker Paul Haggis.

It also follows the high-profile proceedings this year that saw a jury order actor Amber Heard to pay her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, $10 million for defamation after she wrote about her experience speaking out against women’s violence.

Although some of the past cases, including Bill Cosby’s release from jail when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court arbitrarily reversed his 2018 conviction on rape charges, and the denial of freedom to Britney Spears from conservatorship, have been labelled as patriarchal, victims are hopeful in Weinstein’s case.

Once the trial begins, the five women who have previously suffered sexual assaults at the hands of Weinstein. He has already been investigated for 11 separate crimes. The affected will be referred to in court as Jane Doe 1 through 5. It is possible that they may be able to reveal their true names.

Jane Doe 1, an Italian model, says Weinstein assaulted her at her hotel during the L.A.-Italia film festival in February 2013. Two witnesses have been questioned about her statements. Alfred Baroth, a limo driver, testified in February that he drove Weinstein to the festival and subsequently to Beverly Hills. The lady alleges Weinstein barged into her Beverly Hills hotel room late that night.

Pascal Vicedomini, the festival’s producer, testified, speaking in Italian through Zoom. The lengthy interrogation was filmed for the jurors.

Vicedomini introduced Jane Doe 1 and Weinstein, but he doesn’t remember anything about it. He was also asked if Jane Doe 1 asked him to help recover Weinstein’s jacket, which he reportedly abandoned in her hotel room after the incident. Vicedomini doesn’t remember it.

“I don’t know what jacket you’re talking about,” he said.

Judge Lisa B. Lench let four more women appear as “previous bad actions” witnesses. Such testimony was utilized in Weinstein’s first trial, as well as in Bill Cosby’s trials. The prosecution sought to summon 15 women to testify, but the court barred ten of them from testifying, including Daryl Hannah and Rose McGowan.

An additional witness, identified only as Miss I in court, changed her mind and decided not to testify, leaving the prosecution with only four witnesses.

The jury is also anticipated to hear from the accusers’ friends and confidants, with whom they would have aired their claims at the time.

Weinstein has denied the accusations made against him. “All of the allegations against Mr. Weinstein are either fabricated, or they result from consensual sexual relationships that his accusers now falsely characterize as sexual assaults,” Weinstein’s lawyer, Mark Werksman, stated.

According to his counsel, Weinstein is ill, unable to walk, and has multiple diseased teeth since he cannot obtain adequate dental treatment at the Los Angeles County prison.

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