Harvey Weinstein, disgraced Hollywood producer, is set to be retried as early as September, a New York court decided on Wednesday in the first hearing since the movie mogul’s conviction for rape and sexual assault was overturned.
Weinstein, 72, was pictured in a wheelchair and handcuffed being taken in a side entrance of the courthouse in lower Manhattan this afternoon.
The hearing was the first step in the path to retrying the case. Both the prosecutors and attorneys for Weinstein were given a chance to address next steps.
Arthur Aidala, an attorney for Weinstein arrived at the Manhattan courtroom around 2pm ET, when the hearing was scheduled to begin. Gloria Allred, the famed attorney who has represented some of Weinstein’s accusers, was also spotted in the hearing as was Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and Jessica Mann, a former actress who accused Weinstein of rape during his New York criminal trial.
A New York court officer brought Weinstein, who is using a wheelchair, in at 2.20pm, according to Courthouse News. During the hearing, Mr Bragg reaffirmed his commitment to undertaking another trial.
“We believe in this case and we will be retrying the case,” he said, while requesting a fall 2024 trial from Manhattan Supreme Justice Curtis Farber. The District Attorney asked for proceedings to begin as early as September 2024. Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg said her office is confident that Weinstein will be convicted again.
Meanwhile, Mr Aidala reiterated that his client is innocent.
Weinstein was convicted in 2020 of raping and assaulting two women. Last week, New York’s court of appeals ruled that the judge in that case made “egregious errors” by allowing prosecutors to call witnesses whose testimony was not related to the charges being tried.
On Friday, Weinstein was transferred from his prison in upstate New York to Rikers Island jail ahead of the hearing. He was later taken to Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan for ongoing tests as his health continues to decline, Mr Aidala, said.
“He’s got a lot of problems,” the attorney told reporters at a news conference. “He’s getting all kinds of tests. He’s somewhat of a train wreck healthwise.”
The movie mogul was also convicted in 2022 of raping a woman in California. He was scheduled to serve a 16-year prison sentence in the state once his 23-year New York sentence concluded. Now, his legal team is planning to appeal his California conviction.
The decision to overturn Weinstein’s New York conviction horrified the women who came forward against the movie mogul with revelations that would spark the #MeToo movement.
Ashley Judd, the first Hollywood actress to speak out against the producer, addressed last week’s ruling at a news conference.
“This is what it’s like to be a woman in America, living with male entitlement to our bodies”.
Ambra Battilana Gutierrez, a model who claimed Weinstein had groped her, criticized the latest decision and called on the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office to retry the case.
“This is an ongoing failure of the justice system — and the courts — to take survivors seriously and protect our interests,” Ms Battilana Gutierrez wrote on Instagram.
While the latest judicial decision is final, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has vowed to “do everything in our power to retry this case”.
Last week, Mr Aidala said his client was “tried on his character, not the evidence”.
He added: “Today’s legal ruling is a great day for America.”
