Harvey Weinstein has been found guilty of sexually assaulting his former assistant but not guilty of forcing oral sex on a teenage model.
The disgraced movie mogul was convicted of first-degree committing a criminal sexual act on Wednesday afternoon and faces years longer in jail.
He was accused of sexually assaulting production assistant Mimi Haley in 2006, aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013, and model Kaja Sokola in 2006.
A jury of five men and seven women unanimously found Weinstein guilty of sexually assaulting Haley but not guilty of forcing oral sex on Sokola.
They are yet to reach a unanimous verdict on whether Weinstein raped Mann, after almost five days of deliberation filled with high drama in the jury room.
Weinstein‘s retrial on rape and sexual assault charges before a New York Supreme Criminal Court jury in Manhattan lasted well over a month.
He was convicted of sexually assaulting and raping Haley in 2006, but last year, the New York Court of Appeals astonishingly ruled that Weinstein did not receive a fair trial – and tossed out his 23-year sentence.
Harvey Weinstein has been found guilty of sexually assaulting his former assistant but not guilty of raping a teenage model
Mann and Haley restated their cases during the trial, and Polish ex-model Sokola was added to the mix, alleging Weinstein forced oral sex on her in 2006 when she was just 19.
His lawyers told the court the women consented to sex acts with Weinstein as a ‘quid pro quo’ to further their careers, and plan to appeal the guilty verdict.
‘This trial was fair until we got to the jury deliberations,’ Weinstein’s PR consultant Juda Engelmayer said.
‘More than one juror had complained that other jurors had preconceived notions and are using their beliefs of Harvey’s life as evidence of guilt. The foreman said he was threatened by other jurors.
‘We believe there are serious appellate issues, and they will be explored.’
Weinstein was also jailed in Los Angeles for 16 years for rape, forced oral copulation, and third-degree sexual misconduct in 2022, and acquitted of four other charges.
His lawyers filed an appeal weeks after the verdict, which is being considered by the California Court of Appeal.
More to come.
