Former Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein’s retrial on rape and sexual assault charges has been tentatively scheduled to begin on November 12 by a New York City judge. Judge Curtis Farber is open to the possibility of an earlier start date in September depending on pretrial discovery progress. Weinstein’s lawyers are eager to proceed as soon as possible.
Prosecutors are actively pursuing new claims against Weinstein and seeking to shield certain evidence from public view as they prepare to seek a new grand jury. Weinstein’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, argued that it was unfair for prosecutors to add more victims to the case after the conviction was overturned.
Weinstein, who denies ever having nonconsensual sex, was convicted of rape in the third degree in February 2020 in Manhattan. The conviction was later overturned by the New York Court of Appeals in April due to a judge allowing testimony from accusers he was not formally charged with assaulting.
Weinstein’s conviction was seen as a milestone for the #MeToo movement, in which women accused men in various fields of sexual misconduct. He was also sentenced to 16 years following a separate rape trial in California, but has not begun serving that sentence as he awaits his retrial in New York.
The accusers in the New York case are preparing to testify again, with one, Jessica Mann, ready to do so. However, the second accuser, Mimi Haley, has yet to decide if she will participate in the retrial. Meanwhile, Weinstein remains in custody on Rikers Island in New York City.
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