A New York appeals court overturned Harvey Weinstein's conviction Thursday. The former Hollywood producer was found guilty of a criminal sexual act in the first degree and rape in the third degree in a high-profile trial in 2020. He was ultimately sentenced to 23 years in prison. The sentence was extended in 2023 when a Los Angeles court sentenced Weinstein to an additional 16 years in prison on charges of rape and sexual assault.
However, the New York Court of Appeals has ruled, by four votes to three, that there could be flaws in the procedure, which would lead to a review of his sentence for 23 years. Given this, the court ordered that a new trial be opened, as announced by Judge Jenny Rivera in the ruling that was announced just minutes ago:
We conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes because that testimony served no material non-propensity purpose. The court compounded that error when it ruled that defendant, who had no criminal history, could be cross examined about those allegations as well as numerous allegations of misconduct that portrayed defendant in a highly prejudicial light. The synergistic effect of these errors was not harmless.
24opn24 Decision by Williams Perdomo
Were the allegations against Harvey Weinstein valid?
The testimonies that are now being called into question are those of Miriam Haley and Jessica Mann, who testified against the former producer in the 2020 trial. Haley claimed that Weinstein had sexually assaulted her in 2006 while Mann claimed that the Hollywood mogul raped her in 2013.
Now, their testimony is being questioned, representing a new setback for the Me Too movement, which clearly benefited during the high-profile trial of Harvey Weinstein. This was stated by the lawyer who represented the two witnesses, Douglas Wigdor, in statements collected by Variety:
Today’s decision is a major step back in holding those accountable for acts of sexual violence. Courts routinely admit evidence of other uncharged acts where they assist juries in understanding issues concerning the modus operandi or scheme of the defendant. The jury was instructed on the relevance of this testimony and overturning the verdict is tragic in that it will require the victims to endure yet another trial.
Weinstein's lawyer, Arthur Aidala, has not yet commented on the verdict, although he is expected to do so in the coming hours. Weinstein, 72, is currently being held at the Mohawk Correctional Facility in Rome, N.Y., the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision told CNN.
