The New York State Supreme Court on Thursday overturned former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein’s conviction for sex crimes and ordered a new trial. The proceedings, after which the defendant received 23 years in prison in 2020, were marked by procedural errors, according to a higher instance. However, according to CNN, the 72-year-old Weinstein will not be released, as he was also sentenced in Los Angeles last year to 16 years in prison for rape.
New York
4:23 p.m 25/04/2024 (Updated: 17:37 4/25/2024)
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In late 2022, a California jury found Weinstein guilty of raping and sexually assaulting an actress in 2013, while finding not guilty on several other counts | Photo: Jeenah Moon | Source: Reuters
Weinstein’s case became a symbol of the Me Too movement, which a few years ago drew attention to the occurrence of sexual harassment and violence not only in Hollywood. One of the impulses was in the fall of 2017, The New York Times found out about the complaints of several women against the influential producer, who was then tried for rape and other crimes. Same blade He describes the development of the case on Thursday as a stunning twist.
Weinstein was sentenced to 16 years in Los Angeles for rape. The former film producer is sentenced for the second time
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The court voted four to three to overturn the ruling that helped launch the Me Too movement. The court justified the decision by allowing prosecutors to present the testimony of women who claimed that Weinstein had abused them, even though these cases did not directly relate to the allegations against him, Reuters wrote.
The appeals court also said the judge compounded the error by having Weinstein cross-examined in a way that painted him in a “highly damaging” light. “A new trial will remedy these serious errors,” the court said.
According to The New York Times, however, it is not entirely certain that a new trial will happen. Now it will be up to the head of the Manhattan prosecutor’s office, Alvin Bragg, whether he wants to bring the charges again, the newspaper writes. The State Attorney’s Office did not immediately comment on the matter.
As for Weinstein, he will remain behind bars. He is currently in a prison in upstate New York and, according to media reports, is awaiting transfer to a correctional facility in California, where he will serve his second sentence.
In late 2022, a California jury found Weinstein guilty of raping and sexually assaulting the actress in 2013, while pleading not guilty to several other counts. Last February, the ex-producer was sentenced to 16 years in prison, with the sentence to begin after serving the New York one.
After New York and Los Angeles. Ex-producer Weinstein was found guilty of another case of rape
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Weinstein’s lawyer Arthur Aidala called the overturning of the first verdict a huge victory for “all defendants in the state of New York,” writes the AP agency. In an interview with The New York Times, the Supreme Court praised the protection of “the most basic principles that the defendant should have in the trial”.
“Courts routinely admit evidence of other acts that are not at the heart of the charge when it helps jurors understand questions surrounding the defendant’s intent, modus operandi or conduct,” responded attorney Douglas Wigdor, who represented eight of Weinstein’s alleged victims. “The jury was instructed on the relevance of these statements and the overturning of the verdict is a tragedy,” he added.
The AP noted that this is the second major twist involving leading actors in the Me Too case in the past two years. In 2022, the US Supreme Court refused to accept an appeal of a ruling that overturned actor Bill Cosby’s conviction for sexual assault.
CTK
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