Prosecutors say they’re nonetheless looking for new claims in opposition to the Hollywood movie producer.
A New York Metropolis decide has tentatively scheduled the beginning of former Hollywood film mogul Harvey Weinstein’s retrial on rape and sexual assault fees for November 12.
Choose Curtis Farber mentioned on Friday that he was open to an earlier begin date in September, relying on how pretrial discovery progresses. Weinstein’s legal professionals mentioned they need to proceed as quickly as potential.
Final week, prosecutors mentioned they anticipated a November retrial and advised Farber that they have been nonetheless actively pursuing new claims in opposition to Weinstein.
The brand new accusers haven’t been publicly recognized, and prosecutors are looking for to protect sure proof from public view whereas they put together to hunt a brand new grand jury.
Arthur Aidala, Weinstein’s lawyer, mentioned eventually week’s listening to that it was unfair for prosecutors to hunt so as to add extra victims to the case after the conviction was overturned.
Weinstein, 72, has denied wrongdoing and having any nonconsensual sexual encounters with anybody.
Jurors in Manhattan discovered him responsible on rape fees in February 2020, however the New York Court docket of Appeals threw out the conviction in April, discovering Weinstein didn’t get a good trial as a result of a decide improperly allowed testimony by accusers he was not formally charged with assaulting.
However his conviction was a milestone for the #MeToo motion, wherein ladies accused a whole lot of males in leisure, the media, politics and different fields of sexual misconduct.
He was convicted of rape within the third diploma for an assault on an aspiring actress and forcing himself on a TV and movie manufacturing assistant in 2006. Weinstein denied any wrongdoing.
Prosecutors mentioned one of many accusers in that case, Jessica Mann, is ready to testify once more.
Final week, Floria Allred, a lawyer for the second accuser, Mimi Haley, mentioned her consumer had but to resolve whether or not to take part within the retrial.
Weinstein was additionally sentenced to 16 years following a separate rape trial in California. The New York courtroom’s choice didn’t have an effect on that conviction, and he has not begun serving the California sentence.
He’s being held on New York Metropolis’s Rikers Island earlier than his retrial.