New conviction for the former Hollywood star producer. Harvey Weinstein was again sentenced, Wednesday, September 23, to 15 years in prison for sexual assault in 2006. Indicted in 2018 in New York, the founder of Miramax studios, 74, was sentenced to 23 years in prison in 2020 for having imposed cunnilingus on former production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006, as well as for rape charges in 2013 about actress Jessica Mann.
An appeals court overturned that verdict in 2024 on procedural grounds and two new trials followed. He was convicted again in June 2025 of sexual assault against Miriam Haley. She told the court that she was serving “a life sentence” because of the trauma caused by this sexual assault. The jurors were also unable to reach an agreement regarding Jessica Mann. They remained divided on these facts during a third trial in May 2026 and the prosecution, in agreement with Jessica Mann, dropped the charges.
The producer continues to deny the facts
Aged 74, the man who now uses a wheelchair due to health problems, continues to deny all the accusations against him, speaking of consensual sexual relations. “I am not a violent man, show a little mercy,” pleaded the former producer, before the sentencing by Judge Curtis Farber. “I sincerely apologize to anyone I have harmed,” he added.
This conviction comes almost ten years after the #MeToo wave, which became a wave with the Weinstein affair. The former strongman of American cinema has been accused of harassment, sexual assault or rape by more than 80 women, including actresses Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow and Ashley Judd. In October 2017, after years of reports suggesting that he used his influence to sexually assault young women, investigations by the New York Times and the New Yorker revealed the extent of the scandal. The shock wave that followed helped make the #MeToo movement a global phenomenon, freeing the voices of victims of sexual violence in all four corners of the world.
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Other Procedures in California
In a separate proceeding in California, an appeals court in June ordered a reassessment of the 16-year prison sentence that Harvey Weinstein is serving for the rape of model and actress Evgeniya Chernyshova in Los Angeles in 2013. The court, however, confirmed his guilt in this case.
Given his age and the extent of the sentences he faces, whether served concurrently or consecutively, Harvey Weinstein is expected to spend the rest of his days behind bars.
With AFP
