The New York Court of Appeals issued a unanimous ruling upholding Harvey Weinstein’s conviction on charges of rape and sexual assault, rejecting arguments that the trial judge rigged the result in favor of the prosecution.
A panel of five judges determined that the judge did not commit errors that justify annulling Weinstein’s sentence of 11 years in prison .
“We reject the defendant’s arguments and affirm the conviction in all aspects,” Judge Angela Mazzarelli wrote.
While a Weinstein spokesman, Juda Engelmayer, said:
“We are disappointed, but not surprised. We are reviewing all of our options and will seek to petition the Court of Appeals and beyond,” he stated.
Harvey Weinstein was convicted in February of 87 and is currently housed at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in Los Angeles, where he awaits trial on 11 additional charges of sex crimes.
His lawyers argued that Judge James Burke, the trial judge, had made several errors that prevented him from receiving a fair trial.
Claiming that Weinstein was prevented from testifying in his own defense, because prosecutors had been given permission to mention others 28 incidents, including harassment and physical violence, to impugn his testimony.
The appeals court rejected both arguments in its ruling on 45 pages and found that Burke had acted within his discretion in allowing both types of evid ence.
“While we acknowledge the vast amount of impeachment material allowed by the court, we have analyzed that decision within the broader context of all the circumstances presented by this case, and have concluded that the court exercised its discretion providentially”, Mazzarelli explained.
Weinstein was found guilty of sexually assaulting Miriam Haley and raping Jessica Mann in the third degree. Weinstein’s defense argued that both accusers lacked credibility because they later maintained friendly relations with Weinstein.
On appeal, Weinstein’s attorneys asked that the verdict be reversed because the jury could not have found him guilty. beyond a reasonable doubt based on the available evidence.
Weinstein, aged 69, will not be eligible for parole until after turning 87 years old. His lawyers have said that he has health problems and needs extensive treatment to avoid going blind. In Los Angeles, the guards move him in a wheelchair.
You may also be interested in:
–”There was never any aggression” Harvey replied Weinstein to Angelina Jolie
–Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein assured before the court that he is not guilty of the eleven sexual crimes he is accused of