Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial ends in a mistrial after jury says it’s deadlocked
Disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial ended in a mistrial Friday when the jury deadlocked. It was the third time New York prosecutors took the case to trial, and it is now in limbo.
On their third day of deliberations, jurors told the judge they could not reach a unanimous verdict. The judge, Curtis Farber, dismissed the jury, saying he did not “see any reason to go further in deliberations. It’s not meant to be a coercive process.”
The case was seen as a bellwether for the #MeToo movement that held powerful men accountable for decades of sexual misconduct. Weinstein was charged with raping Jessica Mann, a hairstylist and actor, in 2013.
Weinstein’s attorneys argued their sexual relationship was consensual. But during five days of testimony, Mann said the producer raped her after she repeatedly told him no.
The trial hinged almost entirely on Mann’s testimony. There was no physical evidence of the long-ago alleged assault, and no other witnesses testified about other instances in which they say Weinstein assaulted them.
History of the case
Weinstein was originally convicted in 2020 on charges involving Mann and another accuser, Miriam Haley, a former “Project Runway” production assistant, who said he assaulted her in 2006.
A New York appellate court overturned the convictions, saying the trial judge allowed too much testimony about alleged misconduct beyond what the charges covered.
In a retrial last year, Weinstein was again convicted of assaulting Haley. But jury deliberations broke down over Mann’s portion of the case, leading to the retrial that ended Friday.
A hearing that could determine whether Weinstein could be tried a fourth time in the Mann case is scheduled for June 24.
Other cases against Weinstein
Weinstein, 74, will remain behind bars, regardless of how the Mann case is resolved.
In 2022, a California jury convicted Weinstein of rape and two other charges related to a 2013 assault of a model. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison, to be served after he completes other prison terms in New York or other jurisdictions. Weinstein, who has been in poor health for years, is essentially serving a life sentence.
As Straight Arrow previously reported, the criminal charges and other allegations against Weinstein inspired new laws that reduce secrecy around civil cases, weaken arbitration over abuse claims, and give survivors more time and space to file sexual abuse lawsuits.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
