- Harvey Weinstein has been transferred to Los Angeles for a second trial, and he will face new charges.
- Since last year, the disgraceful filmmaker has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for sexual assault in New York.
- In Los Angeles, he was accused of raping and sexually assaulting five women, which could put him in jail for another 140 years.
Disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for sexual assault in New York since last year. He was transferred to Los Angeles on Tuesday for a second trial. He will face new charges. .
The once almighty Hollywood producer — whose downfall is seen as a major victory for the #MeToo movement — was accused of raping and sexually assaulting five women in Los Angeles, which could put him in jail for another 140 years.
A spokesperson for the New York prison authorities said in a statement that the 69-year-old had left Bonaventure Prison in upstate New York and was “handed over to appropriate officials to be transported to California by court order”.
Los Angeles police confirmed that Weinstein “was taken to Los Angeles on an extradition order issued on multiple charges of felony sexual assault.”
The department wrote on Twitter: “After passing the medical examination, he will be detained.”
Today, Harvey Weinstein (Harvey Weinstein) was taken to Los Angeles on an extradition order for multiple felony sexual assaults. After passing the medical examination, he will be detained by the Los Angeles County Sheriff. We do not have information on the date of future hearings.
-LAPD PIO (@LAPDPIO) July 20, 2021
Weinstein’s lawyers have opposed the transfer on medical grounds for several weeks. But in June, New York judge Kenneth Keys rejected their argument and gave the green light for his transfer.
Legal efforts to prevent extradition in Los Angeles did not reach the court.
“We are disappointed that LA DA (Los Angeles District Attorney) did not wait for the judge’s ruling, but we do expect this to happen at some point,” Weinstein’s spokesperson Judah Engelmeier told AFP.
“We will work hard to get Harvey to get the medical care he needs, of course, so that he can be treated fairly.”
According to California law, Weinstein’s trial must begin within 120 days of his extradition, which is mid-November.
His lawyer Mark Workman told the Los Angeles Times that Weinstein may appear in a Los Angeles court as early as Wednesday.
When contacted by AFP, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office did not confirm or deny any details of the extradition of Weinstein.
Weinstein has consistently denied these allegations in New York and Los Angeles, claiming that his accusers agreed.
In early April, he formally appealed his conviction for rape and sexual assault in New York, which was passed to him after a high-profile trial in Manhattan in March 2020.
In total, nearly 90 women accused Weinstein of sexual harassment or sexual assault.
The Los Angeles allegations include former model Lauren Young accusing Weinstein of sexually assaulting her at a hotel in Beverly Hills in 2013 when she was a 22-year-old aspiring actress.
Los Angeles prosecutors also accused Weinstein of raping an Italian model — like the other three Los Angeles accusers, whose identity has not been made public — the night before he allegedly attacked Yang.
