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Friday 26 april 2024

Harvey Weinstein’s rape conviction is overturned by New York’s top court

Continued from Front “It took two years of my stein over his long history
life,” Dunning said. “I had of brutish behavior, includ-
The Manhattan district at- to live through it every day. ing allegations of punch-
torney’s office said it in- But would I do it again? ing his movie producer
tends to retry Weinstein, Yes.” brother at a business meet-
and at least one of his ac- She said that in confronting ing, snapping at waiters,
cusers said through her Weinstein, she had faced hiding a woman’s clothes
lawyer that she would tes- her worst fear and realized and threatening to cut off
tify again. he had no power over her. a colleague’s genitals with
The state Court of Appeals Weinstein’s conviction in gardening shears.
overturned Weinstein’s 2020 was heralded by ac- As a result, Weinstein, who
23-year sentence in a 4-3 tivists and advocates as a wanted to testify, did not
decision, saying “the trial milestone achievement, take the stand, Aidala said.
court erroneously admitted but dissected just as quickly The appeals court labeled
testimony of uncharged, by his lawyers and, later, the allegations “appall-
alleged prior sexual acts” Arthur Aidala, center, an attorney for Harvey Weinstein, speaks the Court of Appeals when ing, shameful, repulsive
and permitted questions during a news conference outside Manhattan Criminal Court, it heard arguments on the conduct” but warned that
about Weinstein’s “bad be- Thursday, April 25, 2024, in New York. matter in February. “destroying a defendant’s
havior” if he had testified. It Associated Press Allegations against Wein- character under the guise
called this “highly prejudi- — two counts of predatory ings by judges allowing evi- stein, the once powerful of prosecutorial need” did
cial” and “an abuse of judi- sexual assault and first-de- dence of uncharged acts and feared studio boss be- not justify some trial evi-
cial discretion.” gree rape. to help jurors understand hind such Oscar winners as dence and testimony.
In a stinging dissent, Judge He was sentenced to 16 the intent or patterns of a “Pulp Fiction” and “Shake- In a majority opinion writ-
Madeline Singas wrote that years in prison in the Los An- defendant’s criminal be- speare in Love,” ushered in ten by Judge Jenny Rivera,
the Court of Appeals was geles case. havior. the #MeToo movement. the Court of Appeals said
continuing a “disturbing Weinstein’s lawyers expect Debra Katz, a prominent Dozens of women came defendants have a right to
trend of overturning juries’ Thursday’s court ruling to civil rights and #MeToo at- forward to accuse Wein- be held accountable “only
guilty verdicts in cases in- have a major impact on torney who represented stein, including famous ac- for the crime charged and,
volving sexual violence.” the appeal of his Los An- several Weinstein accusers, tresses such as Ashley Judd thus, allegations of prior
She said the ruling came at geles rape conviction. Their said her clients are “feel- and Uma Thurman. His New bad acts may not be ad-
“the expense and safety of arguments are due May 20. ing gutted” by the ruling, York trial drew intense pub- mitted against them for the
women.” Jennifer Bonjean, a Wein- but that she believed – and licity, with protesters chant- sole purpose of establishing
In another dissent, Judge stein attorney, said the was telling them – that their ing “rapist” outside the their propensity for criminal-
Anthony Cannataro wrote California prosecution also testimony had changed courthouse. ity.” The Court of Appeals
that the decision was “en- relied on evidence of un- the world. “This is what it’s like to be agreed last year to take
dangering decades of charged conduct alleged “People continue to come a woman in America, liv- Weinstein’s case after an
progress in this incredibly against him. forward, people continue ing with male entitlement intermediate appeals court
complex and nuanced “A jury was told in Califor- to support other victims to our bodies,” Judd said upheld his conviction. Prior
area of law” regarding sex nia that he was convicted who’ve reported sexual as- Thursday. to their ruling, judges on the
crimes after centuries of in another state for rape,” sault and violence, and I Weinstein, incarcerated at lower appellate court at
“deeply patriarchal and mi- Bonjean said. “Turns out he truly believe there’s no go- the Mohawk Correctional oral arguments had raised
sogynistic legal tradition.” shouldn’t have been con- ing back from that,” Katz Facility, about 100 miles doubts about Burke’s con-
The reversal of Weinstein’s victed and it wasn’t a fair said. She predicted Wein- (160 kilometers) northwest duct. One observed that
conviction is the second conviction. … It interfered stein will be convicted at of Albany, maintains his Burke had let prosecutors
major #MeToo setback in with his presumption of in- a retrial, and said accusers innocence. He contends pile on with “incredibly
the last two years. The U.S. nocence in a significant like her client Dawn Dun- any sexual activity was prejudicial testimony” from
Supreme Court refused to way in California.” ning feel great comfort consensual. His lawyers ar- additional witnesses.
hear an appeal of a Penn- Weinstein lawyer Arthur knowing Weinstein will re- gued on appeal that the At a news conference,
sylvania court decision to Aidala called the Court of main behind bars. trial overseen by Judge Aidala predicted that the
throw out Bill Cosby’s sexu- Appeals ruling “a tremen- Dunning, a former actor James Burke was unfair be- lasting effect of the revers-
al assault conviction. dous victory for every crimi- who served as a support- cause three women whose al would be that more de-
Weinstein has been in a nal defendant in the state ing witness at the New claims of unwanted sexual fendants will testify at their
New York prison since his of New York.” York Weinstein trial, said encounters with Weinstein trials, including Weinstein,
conviction for forcibly per- Attorney Douglas H. Wig- in remarks to The Asso- were not part of the charg- who “will be able to tell his
forming oral sex on a TV dor, who has represented ciated Press conveyed es were allowed to testify. side of the story.”
and film production assist- eight Harvey Weinstein ac- through Katz that she was Burke’s term expired at the He said that when he spoke
ant in 2006, and rape in the cusers including two wit- “shocked” by the ruling end of 2022, and he is no to Weinstein Thursday, his
third degree for an attack nesses at the New York and dealing with a range longer a judge. client told him: “I’ve been
on an aspiring actress in criminal trial, called the of emotions, including ask- They also appealed the trial here for years in prison for
2013. He was acquitted on ruling “a major step back” ing herself, “Was it all for judge’s ruling that prosecu- something I didn’t do. You
the most serious charges and contrary to routine rul- naught?” tors could confront Wein- got to fix this.”q