Harvey Weinstein’s Rape Conviction Was Just Overturned. Here’s What That Means
25.04.2024 - 17:19
/ glamour.com
and reported that, for years, Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein had been using his power to sexually abuse women.
In 2020 he was convicted in New York on two counts of sexual assault, which became ’s first major victory.
On April 25, 2024, however, that conviction was overturned by the New York Court of Appeals.
What does this mean? And, maybe more importantly, what happens now?Here’s what we know so far about Harvey Weinstein’s conviction, why it was overturned, and what happens next.In its decision the New York Court of Appeals wrote, “We conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes,” the .
Put more simply, the court decided that Harvey Weinstein, 72, didn’t get a fair trial because the judge at the time allowed alleged victims who were not part of this case to testify against him.
More than 100 women have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct, , but the case was about just two of his accusers.
Four other accusers testified against Weinstein in court, but their allegations weren’t part of the criminal charge against him.The Court of Appeals decision was 4-3.
Per the AP, Judge Madeline Singas, one of the judges who voted against overturning Weinstein’s conviction, wrote in her dissent that the majority was furthering a “disturbing trend of overturning juries’ guilty verdicts in cases involving sexual violence.” She wrote, “The majority’s determination perpetuates outdated notions of sexual violence and allows predators to escape accountability.”Though his New York conviction was overturned, Harvey Weinstein is still not a free man.