Harvey Weinstein, Hollywood’s dishonored tycoon whose inappropriate sexual behavior helped feed the #MeToo movement, will face the new trial in New York for rape charges on April 15, a judge announced Wednesday.
Weinstein, 72, was sentenced in 2020 in New York for the violation of the third grade of a woman and a first -degree criminal sex law against another woman and sentenced 23 years in prison. That conviction was revoked last April after a state appeal court, in a decision of 4-3, determined that the judge of first instance had erred by allowing women to testify about accusations that were not part of the case.
In September, a grand jury from New York City accused Weinstein for new positions.
Judge Curtis Farber said Wednesday that Weinstein’s new trial Include a new accusation that involves a woman who was not in the original case. The woman alleges that forced oral sex at a Manhattan hotel in 2006.
Weinstein is detained in the Rikers Island prison complex. He arrived at the Manhattan court room on Wednesday in a wheelchair in the middle of a litany of health problems. NBC News was the first to report last year that has chronic myeloid leukemia.
During the judicial hearing, Weinstein pressed for a previous trial date, citing his health.
“I will not be there for April,” he said. “I can’t wait for tomorrow. I can’t endure anymore. I’m enduring because I want justice … I want this to end.”
Farber said he has another scheduled judgment, but that he would do everything possible to accommodate a date a week before if all parties agree. The judge also denied the motion of Weinstein’s lawyer to dismiss the new accusation against him.
A Weinstein spokesman said in a statement after the hearing that “Judge Farber demonstrated an exceptional response capacity, and we deeply appreciate his reflexive consideration of Harvey’s condition and circumstances. We remain sure of a fast and efficient test process and firmly believe that Harvey will be completely exonerated. “
In addition to the New York case, Weinstein was convicted of a violation position and two positions of sexual assault in 2022 in Los Angeles and sentenced to 16 years. Weinstein’s legal team is an appeal that conviction.
In total, more than 80 women have accused Weinstein of aggression or sexual harassment. He has repeatedly denied the claims, insisting that the meetings in question were consensual.
The charges against Weinstein were first reported in 2017 by The New York Times and The New Yorker. Articles inspired a broader calculation in entertainment and other high profile industries.