A New York court overturned Harvey Weinstein’s sex crimes conviction in a stunning decision Thursday.
The New York Court of Appeals ruled following a 4-3 vote that testimony from “prior bad acts” witnesses should not have been allowed because it “was unnecessary to establish defendant’s intent and served only to establish defendant’s propensity to commit the crimes charged,” according to CNN.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office reportedly plans to retry the case, with spokesperson Emily Tuttle saying Thursday, “We will do everything in our power to retry this case, and remain steadfast in our commitment to survivors of sexual assault.”
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According to Agence France-Presse, a French international news agency in Paris, Weinstein’s victims have said in a statement that the reversal is “profoundly unjust.”
Meanwhile, the former Hollywood movie exec’s rep, Juda Engelmayer, said, “We are cautiously excited and need to study the ramifications of the appeal decision. We always said this was an unjust trial.”
His lead defense attorney, Donna Rotunno, added, “I believe this decision is larger than Harvey Weinstein. Courts cannot operate on emotion and lack of due process.
“The world is off-balance, and when the justice system does not work, nothing does. This decision restores faith in the foundation of our system.”
Weinstein, 72, was convicted of one count of rape and one criminal sex act count in February 2020.
He was found guilty at the time of a criminal sexual act in the first degree for forcibly performing oral sex on former “Project Runway” production assistant Miriam “Mimi” Haleyi and rape in the third degree for an attack on hairstylist Jessica Mann.
However, even then, the verdict wasn’t a total win for prosecutors. Weinstein was also found not guilty in that same trial relating to the charges of predatory sexual assault — which carried a life sentence — and rape in the first degree for Mann.
During the harrowing trial, 28 emotional witnesses appeared in front of the jury, including six women who tearfully testified. However, it’s been reported that at least 80 women overall have come forward to accuse him of misconduct throughout his tenure in Hollywood.
During the New York trial, Haleyi, for her part, recalled when Weinstein allegedly held her down and forcibly performed oral sex on her on July 10, 2006.
However, his defense lawyer, Rotunno, reminded the jury in her closing remarks that Mann and Haleyi admitted on the stand that they had consensual sex with the mega-producer after the alleged attacks.
Weinstein was hit with a 23-year prison sentence for raping Mann and sexually abusing Haleyi.
Three years later, February 2023, he was sentenced to another 16 years in prison following his trial in Los Angeles for the forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and sexual penetration by foreign object of Jane Doe 1, an Italian model, at the Mr. C Hotel in the city in February 2013.
Weinstein said in a statement to Page Six at the time, “It is incredible to be convicted for a crime I wasn’t even present for. I am innocent.
“I never raped or assaulted anyone. This person perjured herself at least three times and then sued for money, when she said on the stand that she would ‘never’. I was never with her.”
The many accusations levied against the Hollywood mogul behind hit films like “Pulp Fiction,” “Clerks” and “Shakespeare in Love” helped sparked a revolution in which several other victims of sexual abuse came forward to call out their respective abusers for the #MeToo movement.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-330-0226.
