Weinstein faces new charges in New York after UK case dropped

Harvey Weinstein, spared from prosecution in the UK on Thursday, now faces the possibility of a fresh indictment in New York. Prosecutors are re-examining his rape case and may charge him with up to three more sexual assaults.

The Crown Prosecution Service in Britain, which authorised two charges of indecent assault against Weinstein in 2022, decided to drop the proceedings, citing a lack of a realistic prospect of conviction. They encouraged potential victims to report any sexual assault to the police.

Meanwhile, the Manhattan district attorney’s office has begun presenting evidence to a grand jury regarding three previously uncharged allegations against Weinstein. These include two sexual assaults from the mid-2000s and another from 2016.

The grand jury’s term ends Friday, and a vote on an indictment could occur by the week’s end, though it might extend beyond that. Prosecutors aim to combine any new charges with existing ones for a joint trial.

In April, Weinstein’s rape and sexual assault convictions were overturned by New York’s top court. The Court of Appeals ruled that the judge in the 2020 trial had improperly allowed testimony from women whose claims were not part of the case.

During a court conference on Tuesday, prosecutors shared details about the additional allegations being considered by the grand jury. These include alleged sexual assaults at the Tribeca Grand Hotel and a Lower Manhattan residential building between late 2005 and mid-2006, and another at a Tribeca hotel in May 2016.

Judge Curtis Farber elicited these details as Weinstein’s lawyers considered whether he should testify before the grand jury, which he initially wanted to do. However, Weinstein’s lawyer, Aidala, announced Thursday that he would not testify due to insufficient information about the new allegations.

Aidala criticised the prosecutors for trying to add more accusers instead of retrying the original indictment. Weinstein, who denies all accusations of rape or sexual assault, remains in custody in New York awaiting a retrial scheduled for 12 November. He is expected in court for a pretrial hearing on 12 September.

Weinstein became a central figure in the #MeToo movement, which surged in 2017 as numerous women shared accounts of his misconduct. British police investigated multiple sexual assault allegations dating from the 1980s to 2015.

In June 2022, the Crown Prosecution Service authorised two charges of indecent assault related to a 1996 incident in London. The victim was in her 50s at the time of the announcement. Unlike many countries, the UK has no statute of limitations for rape or sexual assault.

Following the overturning of Weinstein’s conviction, New York prosecutors announced plans to file new sexual assault charges within the statute of limitations. At his original trial, Weinstein was convicted of forcibly performing oral sex on a TV and film production assistant in 2006 and third-degree rape of an aspiring actor in 2013. These allegations will feature in his retrial. His acquittals on charges of predatory sexual assault and first-degree rape remain.

After the retrial, Weinstein is set to serve a 16-year sentence in California for a separate rape conviction in Los Angeles from 2022. Once a powerful figure in Hollywood, Weinstein co-founded Miramax and The Weinstein Company, producing films such as “Pulp Fiction” and “Shakespeare in Love.”