Harvey Weinstein’s New York rape and sexual assault convictions have been dramatically overturned after an appeals court ruled the judge made a ‘crucial’ error in his handling of the case, Daily Mail reports.
According to the report by Daily Mail, the New York Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday that the disgraced movie producer did not receive a fair trial when he was convicted in 2020.
It is unclear if the bombshell ruling made by New York’s highest court will free him from prison, as he still has another conviction in Los Angeles for a separate rape
Harvey Weinstein, 72, has been serving 23 years in a New York jail for the two sex attacks against aspiring actress Jessica Mann and production assistant Mimi Haley. He was handed a further 16 years following his conviction in LA in 2022.
Harvey Weinstein’s team in California is appealing the decision and should that be overturned, he could walk free until a new trial.
Weinstein became the face of the #MeToo movement after dozens of women came forward alleging sexual abuse. Thursday’s decision was described as ‘profoundly unjust’ by his accusers.
Justice James M. Burke, who presided over Harvey Weinstein’s New York City case in 2020, made a ‘crucial’ mistake during the trial, according to the appellant ruling today.
In a 4-3 decision, the court determined that the Judge Burke had made an error in allowing women to testify who were not part of the case.
‘We conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes,’ the decision read.
‘It is an abuse of judicial discretion to permit untested allegations of nothing more than bad behavior that destroys a defendant’s character but sheds no light on their credibility as related to the criminal charges lodged against them.’
‘The news today is not only disheartening, but it’s profoundly unjust,’ a statement from Silence Breakers, the group behind the #MeToo movement said.
‘But this ruling does not diminish the validity of our experiences or our truth; it’s merely a setback. The man found guilty continues to serve time in a California prison.
‘We continue to stand strong and advocate for that change. We will continue to fight for justice for survivors everywhere.’
Actress Ashley Judd, one of the first to publicly accuse Weinstein, shared her disappointment with the ruling.
‘That’s really hard for the survivors … We still live in our truth. And we know what happened,’ she told the New York Times.
But Weinstein’s lawyer hailed the decision as, ‘not just a victory for Mr Weinstein, but for every criminal defendant in the state of New York’.
‘We compliment the court of appeals for upholding the most basic principles that a criminal defendant should have in a trial,’ he told the outlet.
A new trial has been ordered which could see accusers take to the stand once again.
Weinstein, 72, was jailed in New York for the two attacks in 2006 and 2013.
He was convicted of third-degree rape against Mann and criminal sexual act against Haley, but acquitted of first-degree rape and two counts of predatory sexual assault.
The court heard Mann was attacked by Weinstein in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013.
Haley testified that he forcibly performed oral sex on her in his apartment while she had her period in 2006.
The predatory sexual assault charge, which was the most serious, incorporated Sopranos actress Anabella Sciorra’s allegation that she was raped by Weinstein in her Manhattan apartment in the mid-1990s.
Sciorra’s allegation was too old to be charged on its own because of the statute of limitations, but jurors had to consider it as a basis for charges alleging Weinstein is a sexual predator.
In total, six women took to the stand to give harrowing accounts of alleged abuse.
Costume designer Dawn Dunning, model Tarale Wulff and actress Lauren Marie Young were among those who testified they were enticed into meeting Weinstein for professional reasons and then groped or raped.
Weinstein was given an additional 16 years sentence in Los Angeles following conviction for a rape which took place in 2013.
The victim was attacked by the shamed Miramax boss at a hotel room after a film festival, but only came forward after #MeToo opened the floodgates against him.
Weinstein was acquitted in Los Angeles on charges against Mann who alleged he also raped her in California.
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyers argued Judge James Burke’s rulings in favor of the prosecution turned the trial into ‘1-800-GET-HARVEY.’
But Wigdor Law, which represented eight of Weinstein’s accusers including two connected to the New York trial, blasted the appeal court’s ruling.
‘Today’s decision is a major step back in holding those accountable for acts of sexual violence.
‘Courts routinely admit evidence of other uncharged acts where they assist juries in understanding issues concerning the intent, modus operandi or scheme of the defendant.
‘The jury was instructed on the relevance of this testimony and overturning the verdict is tragic in that it will require the victims to endure yet another trial.’
The ruling was handed down by Judge Jenny Rivera, with Chief Judge Rowan D. Wilson and Judges Betsy Barros and Christine Clark concurring.
Judges Madeline Singas, Michael Garcia and Anthony Cannataro dissented, while Judges Shirley Troutman and Caitlin Halligan took no part.
In a scathing dissent, Judge Singas accused the majority judges of ‘whitewashing the facts to conform to a he-said/she-said narrative’.
‘The majority’s determination perpetuates outdated notions of sexual violence and allows predators to escape accountability,’ Singas said.
The reversal of his conviction is the second major #MeToo setback in the last two years, after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a Pennsylvania court decision to throw out Bill Cosby’s sexual assault conviction.
Weinstein’s conviction stood for more than four years, heralded by activists and advocates as a milestone achievement, but dissected just as quickly by his lawyers and, later, the Court of Appeals when it heard arguments on the matter in February.
New York State of Appeals Chief Judge Janet DiFiore ruled that Harvey Weinstein’s appeal could proceed in 2022.
At the time, his lawyer Arthur Aidala argued that women who did not form part of the criminal allegations should not have been allowed to take the stand and testify about alleged sex abuse by his client.
He also alleged that one juror did not disclose they’d previously written a book on sexual predators, which he said should have disqualified them from serving.
Weinstein denied the charges against him and insisted that his relations with the women were consensual.
More than 80 women came forward to accuse the Oscar-winning producer of sexual assault and harassment.
The allegations first surfaced publicly in a New York Times story in 2017 detailing decades of alleged abuse.
Actresses Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd were among those who were named in the piece as accusers.
The allegations sparked a sea change in attitudes towards sexual misconduct in the workplace.