But it wasn’t a total defeat for the 70-year-old Weinstein. He was acquitted in one case, and the eight men and four women failed to reach a unanimous verdict on three other counts. For these three allegations, including rape and forced oral sex, the judge considered a so-called mistrial (“Mistrial”).
If found guilty on all counts, Weinstein could face up to 60 years in prison. According to the Public Ministry, it is still possible to get up to 24 years in prison. The sentence will be announced later.
Weinstein, in a gray suit, bowed his head as the first guilty verdict was read, reporters in court reported. The trial, which has been ongoing since October, revolved around seven counts, including rape and other sexual assaults. The allegations came from four women over a period from 2004 to 2013. Most of the assaults reportedly took place in Beverly Hills hotels.
Plaintiffs described Weinstein’s alleged assaults, some tearfully and in drastic detail. According to Weinstein’s defense attorneys, either the sexual acts were consensual or some of the allegations made were fabricated by the women. According to Weinstein’s lawyers, the plaintiffs had sex with the influential film producer to get ahead in Hollywood.
Prosecutors portrayed the accused as a “degenerate rapist” who used his power to attack women and act as a predator. Among the plaintiffs was Jennifer Siebel, the current wife of California Governor Gavin Newsom. As an aspiring actress and producer, she wanted to talk to Weinstein about professional projects in 2005, but was raped by him in a hotel room, she testified on the witness stand. The jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the two charges against Siebel.
That was “disappointing,” Siebel’s attorney, Elizabeth Fegan, said in a statement. But the bravery and courage displayed by the women on the witness stand has not diminished. Thanks to his “heroic deeds,” Weinstein will likely spend the rest of his life behind bars “where he belongs,” Fegan wrote.
The three guilty verdicts involved a model identified as Jane Doe 1, who testified on the witness stand that she traveled to Hollywood from Rome in February 2013 for a film festival. Weinstein entered his hotel room on the pretext that he wanted to talk. He forced her to perform oral sex and raped her there, she tearfully testified.
“Harvey is obviously disappointed with the verdict,” Weinstein spokesman Juda Engelmayer said in a statement. However, they believed that the Jane Doe 1 case should be appealable. Weinstein is determined to pursue legal action.
With the trial in California, Weinstein was again tried for sexual assault. A 2020 trial in New York for rape and sexual assault ended with a guilty verdict on two of five counts and a 23-year sentence. The New York trial marked a milestone in legal history, but the last word has yet to be said.
Weinstein’s legal team recently appealed that decision. A decision on that could be made in 2023. But with the recent guilty verdict, the once-powerful Hollywood mogul, who produced blockbuster films like “The English Patient,” “Pulp Fiction,” “Good Will Hunting” and “Gangs of New York” with his company will likely give up his hopes for an early release.
Five years ago, in October 2017, actress Ashley Judd and other women came out publicly for the first time in an investigative New York Times article. Other women then accused Weinstein of sexual assault in a report by The New Yorker magazine. The new film “She Said” by German director Maria Schrader revolves around this denunciation of the Weinstein scandal by two journalists from the “New York Times”.
Affected people around the world have seen their own experiences in Weinstein’s alleged victims. Under the slogan “Eutoo” (“Me too”), they found a public audience – with consequences for other influential people who were denounced, fired or accused. Since 2017, more than 80 women have publicly accused Weinstein of sexual assault.