Summary: New York City has charged Harvey Weinstein with six new sex crimes, and if convicted, he could face life in prison.
Harvey Weinstein was indicted this year in New York for the rape of two women, and on Monday, he was brought with six new charges for another incident against a third woman. According to The Hollywood Reporter, “The new charges against Weinstein include an additional count of a criminal sexual act against a third woman in 2006, as well as two counts of predatory sexual assault, a Class A-II felony.”
New York District Attorney Cyrus Vance said that his office is still investigating Weinstein, who was outed in October 2017 as a serial predator.
“A Manhattan Grand Jury has now indicted Harvey Weinstein on some of the most serious sexual offenses that exist under New York’s Penal Law,” Vance said in a statement. “This indictment is the result of the extraordinary courage exhibited by the survivors who have come forward. Our investigation continues. If you are a survivor of the predatory abuse with which Mr. Weinstein is charged, there is still time to pursue justice. Please call us at 212-335-9373.”
Last year, The New York Times ran a story of how Weinstein used his position as founder of The Weinstein Company to lure women into his hotel room, where he would proposition them for sexual favors. If they did not comply, he would threaten their careers. One of the women who spoke up in the Times article was actress Ashley Judd who later sued him for retaliation.
After the Times article was published, dozens of women including Asia Argento, Rose McGowan, Mira Sorvino, and Angelina Jolie came forward and said that Weinstein had inappropriately requested sexual favors during his career. Many times, these favors were requested during the guise of auditions or business meetings.
In early June, Weinstein pleaded not guilty to the other charges brought against him in May. He was charged with rape in the first and third degrees for forcing sex acts from two women in 2013 and 2004.
Weinstein is out on $1 million bail. He is being represented by criminal attorney Blair Berk, who spoke about the #MeToo movement last month in Haaretz magazine. She did not directly speak about her client’s alleged misconduct.
“One of those very uncomfortable truths is that there are women who engaged in sexual contact with a man in situations when they’re not necessarily attracted to that man but that more powerful man was offering them something they want, advancement, the Golden Globe, something they want, and they decided to have that sexual encounter in order to get that. Intentionally, consensually and later regret that they did that. We can decide that that is a fundamentally coercive act and should criminalize it, but right now it’s not a crime and I believe it shouldn’t be a crime,” Berk said.
Weinstein has maintained his innocence and said that the sexual acts he committed were consensual. At the time, he was married to fashion designer Georgina Chapman, who has since left him.
After the Weinstein scandal erupted last year, Weinstein was removed from The Weinstein Company and ostracized from Hollywood.
If Weinstein is convicted of the new charges, he could face life in prison.
- Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer Blair Berk Shares Thoughts on #MeToo
- Harvey Weinstein Pleads Not Guilty to Rape
- Harvey Weinstein Posts $1 Million Bail
- Ashley Judd Sues Harvey Weinstein for Ruining Her Career