Harvey Weinstein gets 16 years for rape, sexual assault


PTI, Feb 24, 2023, 9:37 AM IST

Los Angeles: A Los Angeles judge on Thursday sentenced Harvey Weinstein to 16 years in prison after a jury convicted him of the 2013 rape and sexual assault of an Italian actor and model. The sentence comes on top of the more than 20 years the 70-year-old Weinstein has left to serve for a similar 2020 conviction in New York, furthering the fall of the onetime movie magnate who became a #MeToo magnet.

Weinstein directly appealed to Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench, saying: “I maintain that I’m innocent. I never raped or sexually assaulted Jane Doe 1.” The woman who Weinstein was convicted of raping sobbed in the courtroom as he spoke.

Moments earlier she had told the judge about the pain she felt after being attacked by Weinstein. “Before that night I was a very happy and confident woman. I valued myself and the relationship I had with God,” the woman, who was identified in court only as Jane Doe 1, said. “I was excited about my future. Everything changed after the defendant brutally assaulted me. There is no prison sentence long enough to undo the damage.”

Lench handed down the sentence Thursday after rejecting a motion by Weinstein’s lawyers for a new trial.

Jurors in December convicted Weinstein of one count of rape and two counts of sexual assault against the woman who at the trial’s opening in October gave a dramatic and emotional account of him arriving uninvited at her hotel room, talking his way in and assaulting her during a film festival.

The jury spared Weinstein an even longer sentence when they acquitted him of the sexual battery of a massage therapist and failed to reach verdicts on counts involving two other women.

The defense contended during the trial that Weinstein had consensual sex with two of the women he was charged with assaulting and that two others — including the one who led to his conviction — were making up the incidents entirely. Last week, Lench rejected a request from Gloria Allred, an attorney for some of the women who testified at trial, to allow others to make similar statements in court about the man who has for five years been a magnet for the #MeToo movement.

“I’m not going to make this an open forum on Mr. Weinstein’s conduct,” Lench said at the time.

The Associated Press does not typically name people who say they have been sexually assaulted. Legal uncertainties will remain on both coasts for Weinstein.

New York’s highest court has agreed to hear his appeal in his rape and sexual assault convictions there. And prosecutors in Los Angeles have yet to say whether they will retry Weinstein on counts they were unable to reach a verdict on. It is not yet clear where he will serve his time while these issues are decided.

His New York sentence would be served before a California prison term, though a retrial or other issues could keep him from being sent back there soon.

Weinstein is eligible for parole in New York in 2039.

Udayavani is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest news.

Top News

Kannada Sahitya Sammelana: Food distribution creates stir

Rohit gets hit in nets, practice pitches on slower side

India & Kuwait elevate ties to strategic level; ink defence pact after PM Modi meets top Kuwaiti leaders

In Kuwait, PM Modi meets yoga practitioner, other influencers from Gulf country

Notorious gangster wanted in UAPA case arrested at Nepal border

Mandhana, Renuka blow away West Indies in first ODI

‘Condition critical’, say doctors as farmer leader Dallewal’s fast enters 27th day

Related Articles More

Diljit Dosanjh denies blocking AP Dhillon on social media

From reel to real: Drug smuggler caught from theatre during ‘Pushpa 2’ show

Rafi@100: Mohammed Rafi is my musical father, says Sonu Nigam

‘Pushpa 2’ most watched film of 2024, Coldplay concert to be biggest draw in 2025: report

‘All We Imagine As Light’ leads Barack Obama’s 2024 recommended movies list

MUST WATCH

Tulunadu Daivaradane

Feeding Birds with Creative Paddy Art!

Areca Nut

HOTEL SRI DURGA BHAVANA

Harish Poonja


Latest Additions

Kannada Sahitya Sammelana: Food distribution creates stir

Rohit gets hit in nets, practice pitches on slower side

India & Kuwait elevate ties to strategic level; ink defence pact after PM Modi meets top Kuwaiti leaders

In Kuwait, PM Modi meets yoga practitioner, other influencers from Gulf country

Notorious gangster wanted in UAPA case arrested at Nepal border

Thanks for visiting Udayavani

You seem to have an Ad Blocker on.
To continue reading, please turn it off or whitelist Udayavani.