Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced Hollywood producer whose scandal in 2017 was pivotal in drawing global attention to the #MeToo movement, will be tried for a third time by New York prosecutors in the sexual assault case of Jessica Mann.
New York Judge Curtis Farber said on Wednesday that he wants the trial to take place before the end of this year.
A jury could not render a verdict in June on a rape charge accusing Weinstein of sexually assaulting Mann, a former actor.
The same jury found Weinstein guilty in June of sexually assaulting former “Project Runway” production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 and not guilty of assaulting Polish former runway model Kaja Sokola that same year.
Weinstein’s sentencing for the guilty verdict in Haley’s case is scheduled for Sept. 30, Farber said.
The judge vowed not to sentence Weinstein on the charge involving Haley until Weinstein is tried again for the charge related to Mann. Therefore, unless Weinstein pleads guilty to that charge, prosecutors drop the charge or the charge is tried before the end of September, Weinstein’s sentencing will presumably be pushed to a later date.
At a press conference shortly afterward, an attorney for Weinstein, Arthur Aidala, suggested that prosecutors should drop the charge related to Mann.
“In the big picture, even if Mr. Weinstein got convicted of Jessica Mann, there would probably be very little effect on what his ultimate sentence would be,” Aidala said.
He suggested that Weinstein will not plead guilty to the charge because his client “doesn’t want the word rape associated with him in any way, shape or form.”
Weinstein, 73, denied all of the charges. Throughout the retrial, his lawyers insisted the sexual encounters with his three accusers were “transactional” and “consensual,” and painted the women as opportunists.
During deliberations, the jury foreman expressed to the judge that the jury member were clashing over reaching a verdict. The foreman told the court that one of the other jurors threatened him and told him: “You know me; you going to see me outside.”
The foreman then refused to continue deliberations on the final charge, prompting prosecutors to move for a mistrial.
Weinstein, who co-founded global film studios Miramax and The Weinstein Company, was originally convicted of rape and criminal sexual act by the same court in 2020 and sentenced to 23 years in prison for the crimes.
The landmark sentencing was seen as a watershed moment for the #MeToo movement, which prompted a global reckoning of sexual harassment and abuse.
Last year, however, New York’s highest court overturned the conviction, prompting Weinstein’s retrial this summer. The state Court of Appeals found that the judge in the 2020 trial prejudiced the jury by allowing women with allegations that did not pertain to the case to testify.
Weinstein was also found guilty by a Los Angeles jury of sexual assault and sentenced to 16 years in state prison, a conviction he is currently appealing.
The once jet-setting, Oscar-winning movie producer has remained in custody at Rikers Island jail, and has frequently been hospitalized due to health issues.
