The 70-year-old predator was once one of Hollywood’s most important figures, having the ability to build or ruin cinematic careers, until reports in 2017 released a torrent of decades-old claims, precipitating his catastrophic collapse.
In a California trial, disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was convicted guilty of rape.
The 70-year-old offender was on trial in Los Angeles for allegedly raping and sexually assaulting two women and committing sexual violence against two more.
A jury found him guilty of raping one lady but not guilty of sexual battery by constraint against another.
Several counts, including those involving Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the wife of California Governor Gavin Newsom, and the allegations of another woman, were declared a mistrial due to the jury’s inability to reach verdicts.
In addition to being convicted guilty of rape, Weinstein was also found guilty of forced oral copulation and sexual penetration by a foreign object involving the same victim. She said he entered her hotel room uninvited during the 2013 Los Angeles film festival.
Weinstein appeared to cover his face with his hands as the opening counts of guilt were read, then turned his head forward as the remainder of the verdict was read.
He risks up to 24 years in prison if convicted.
“Harvey Weinstein will never again have the ability to violate a woman. Where he belongs, he will spend the rest of his life behind bars “Ms. Siebel Newsom issued the following statement.
Throughout the trial, Weinstein’s attorneys intimidated, demeaned, and ridiculed us survivors with sexism, bigotry, and bullying methods. The trial served as a sharp reminder that our society has much work to do.”
Filmmaker currently serving a 23-year sentence
The Oscar-winning film producer is currently serving a 23-year prison sentence for rape and sexual assault after being convicted in a landmark #MeToo case in New York in 2020.
However, he was granted permission to appeal early this year.
As a result, the significance of the month-long, largely regarded as significant LA trial increased.
In their final argument, prosecutors encouraged jurors to stop Weinstein’s “reign of terror” by convicting him.
His attorney had maintained that the four women were untrustworthy.
Alan Jackson suggested that the alleged sexual assaults of two women by Harvey Weinstein on consecutive days in 2013 “just never occurred.”
In addition, he asserted that Weinstein’s alleged rape and abuse of the two other women in 2005 and 2010 occurred during “100% consensual” encounters in which the ladies participated in career development.
The establishment of the #MeToo movement
Weinstein, a once-powerful Hollywood figure whose films included Shakespeare in Love, Pulp Fiction, The English Patient, and Gangs of New York, could build and break careers in the film industry.
In October 2017, however, several women accused him of sexual assault, according to publications in The New York Times and The New Yorker. Additionally, he was accused of negotiating settlements to keep the stories quiet.
In the subsequent months, dozens more women came forward with allegations of decades-old rape, sexual assault, and harassment by Weinstein.
He acknowledged that his actions had “caused a great deal of anguish” but denied all sexual claims made against him.
It was the genesis of the #MeToo movement, as women came forward to describe instances involving powerful personalities in the entertainment sector and beyond.
She Said, starring Carey Mulligan, is the film adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning exposé of Harvey Weinstein by New York Times reporters.
