Harvey Weinstein Indicted on Rape, Sex Act Charges by Grand Jury
UPDATE 3: Harvey Weinstein was indicted with three additional felony sex charges on July 2nd, Variety reports. According to the Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, two of the new charges could potentially lead to a life sentence. The new incident involves an incident with a third woman, who is accusing Weinstein of forcibly performing oral sex on her on July 10, 2006.
“A Manhattan Grand Jury has now indicted Harvey Weinstein on some of the most serious sexual offenses that exist under New York’s Penal Law,” Vance said in a statement. “This indictment is the result of the extraordinary courage exhibited by the survivors who have come forward. Our investigation continues. If you are a survivor of the predatory abuse with which Mr. Weinstein is charged, there is still time to pursue justice. Please call us at 212-335-9373.”
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UPDATE 2: On Tuesday, Harvey Weinstein pleaded not guilty to rape and criminal sexual act charges. Weinstein was indicted last week by a grand jury in New York.
UPDATE: On Wednesday, Harvey Weinstein was indicted by a New York Grand Jury on charges of rape and a criminal sexual act, NBC News reports.
The disgraced producer was charged with first-degree rape and third-degree rape for an incident with one woman, and first-degree criminal sex act – forced oral sex – with another. Weinstein was arrested and arraigned last Friday after turning himself into authorities.
“This indictment brings the defendant another step closer to accountability for the crimes of violence with which he is now charged,” said Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance in a statement. “Our office will try this case not in the press, but in the courtroom where it belongs. The defendant’s recent assault on the integrity of the survivors and the legal process is predictable. We are confident that when the jury hears the evidence, it will reject these attacks out of hand.”
Weinstein’s attorney Ben Brafman requested a postponement of the trial, citing he did not have adequate time to brief his client on new information and prepare for testimony. Brafman’s request was denied. Within hours, the Grand Jury’s indictment was handed down.
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The identities of Weinstein’s two victims have not yet been announced. It is believed that one of the women is Lucia Evans, who accused Weinstein of orally raping her in 2004 during what she thought would be a casting meeting.
As part of his pre-negotiated bail, Weinstein will put up $1 million in cash, wear a monitoring device on his ankle and forfeit his passport.
According to NBC News, Weinstein arrived at the NYPD’s 1st Precinct stationhouse just before 7:30 a.m. The producer, who has reportedly spent the majority of his time the past six months at an Arizona rehabilitation clinic, carried several books into the station, including Elia Kazan: A Biography and Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway Revolution. Weinstein remained silent when peppered with reporters’ questions while entering the station.
Harvey Weinstein was just walked out of the police station in handcuffs https://t.co/xvUOsBkWRY
— Meg Wagner (@megwagner) May 25, 2018
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“Mr. Weinstein has always maintained that he has never engaged in non-consensual sexual behavior with anyone,” his lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said following Weinstein’s arrest. “Nothing about today’s proceedings changes Mr. Weinstein’s position. He has entered a plea of not guilty and fully expects to be exonerated.
“We intend to move very quickly to dismiss these charges,” he added. “We believe that they are constitutionally flawed. We believe that they are not factually supported by the evidence and we believe that at the end of the process, Mr. Weinstein will be exonerated.”
Prior to Weinstein’s arraignment, several of Weinstein’s victims commented on his arrest via Twitter. “Today, Harvey Weinstein will take his first step on his inevitable descent to hell,” Asia Argento tweeted early Friday morning. “We, the women, finally have real hope for justice.”
Rose McGowan said in a statement, “Twenty years ago, I swore that I would right this wrong. Today we are one step closer to justice,” she said. “May this give hope to all victims and survivors everywhere that are telling their truths.”
In addition to the pending New York charges, Weinstein is also facing a Los Angeles Police Department investigation, with three accusations against the producer currently in the hands of prosecutors, as well as a lawsuit filed by Ashley Judd.