Harvey Weinstein Gets Mistrial on 3rd Rape Charge as Jury Foreman Refuses to Return to Deliberations
Harvey Weinstein's third rape charge ended in a mistrial on Thursday after the deadlocked jury deliberations became contentious.
The New York jury found Weinstein guilty on one charge of first-degree sexual assault against a former 'Project Runway' production assistant on Wednesday, but acquitted him on a second charge of sexually assaulting a model in 2006.
However, Supreme Court Justice Curtis Farber was 'forced' to declare a mistrial after the jury of seven women and five men could not reach a unanimous verdict on the third lesser charge of third-degree rape. Additionally, the jury foreperson reportedly refused to resume deliberations due to alleged threats from other jury members.
'Sometimes jury deliberations become heated,' Farber told the courtroom. 'I understand this particular deliberation was more heated than some others. That's unfortunate.'
With that said, the judge also said the remaining jury members 'did not describe anything that rose to the level of threats' and that they were ultimately confused why the foreman 'bailed out.'
Jessica Mann, a then-aspiring actress who accused the former media mogul of a 2013 rape, released a statement on Wednesday following the split partial verdict.
'I would never lie about rape or use something so traumatic to hurt someone,' she said. 'Rape can happen in relationships – and in dynamics where power and manipulation control the narrative. Some victims survive by appeasing, and many carry deep empathy, even for their abusers. That's part of the trap.'
'I waived liability because I only ask for accountability,' Mann added. 'Even in my dynamic with Harvey – the lack of a 'seductress' is under-discussed and the evidence that usually follows a person with those intentions. The smear campaign built around me is hollow. The evidence doesn't exist because the propaganda isn't real.'
She further noted that Weinstein 'hides behind PR firms, lawyers, spy agencies contracted to intimidate,' while she can only speak for herself.
'Abusers pre-select their victims – not just for vulnerability, but for how easily the world is ready to discredit them. For how 'believable' their destruction will be,' Mann concluded. 'They pick people society already doubts. People they think no one will miss. Then, when the damage is done, they bury the crime in the wreckage, point to the chaos, and say, See? It's her.'
Meanwhile, Weinstein's spokesperson told TheWrap on Thursday: 'We take the wins where we get them — and the acquittal on the Sokola charge was a major one. A conviction there would have reset the sentencing clock entirely. As it stands, with a conviction only on the Haley count, time served applies and that clock is already running.'
'This trial has raised substantial appellate issues — and Harvey would welcome the opportunity to have those fully reviewed. It is the Court and the prosecution who now have every incentive to avoid seeing this case overturned on appeal,' his team continued. 'That reality creates an opening for a fair and balanced sentencing outcome — one that serves the interests of justice, and gives Harvey a path to come home much sooner than many expected.'
Weinstein remains on the hook for a 16-year sentence in California, where he was convicted in December 2022. That verdict is under an appeal of the same nature that got his 2022 New York conviction thrown out due to improper testimony from women who said they were assaulted, but whose accusations were not formally charged. He has long denied any wrongdoing, admitting that having sex with aspiring actresses amounted to cheating on his wife, not assault.
The post Harvey Weinstein Gets Mistrial on 3rd Rape Charge as Jury Foreman Refuses to Return to Deliberations appeared first on TheWrap.
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