Former movie producer Harvey Weinstein, whose sexual assault conviction last month was hailed as a victory for the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct by powerful men, is expected to be sentenced at a criminal court in Manhattan on Wednesday, Reuters writes.
Once one of Hollywood’s most influential producers, Weinstein, 67, faces a maximum sentence of 29 years in prison, after a jury on Feb. 24 found him guilty of sexually assaulting former production assistant Mimi Haleyi and raping former aspiring actress Jessica Mann.
Both women are expected to speak at Weinstein’s sentencing.
Prosecutors in court filings last week did not say whether they would seek the maximum, but said the sentence should reflect not only the crimes of which he was convicted, but a “lifetime of abuse towards others.”
More than 100 women, including famous actresses, have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct stretching back decades, fueling the #MeToo movement against sexual abuse and harassment. He has denied the allegations and said that any sex was consensual.
“He has consistently advanced his own sordid desires and fixations over the well-being of others,” prosecutors wrote of Weinstein. “He has destroyed people’s lives and livelihoods or threatened to do so on whim.”
Weinstein’s lawyers on Monday urged Justice James Burke to impose the minimum sentence of five years, asking him to consider Weinstein’s charitable activities and saying a longer sentence would likely mean Weinstein would die in prison.
“His life story, his accomplishments, and struggles are simply remarkable and should not be disregarded in total because of the jury’s verdict,” they said.
The former producer has been awaiting sentencing in New York’s Rikers Island jail, where he was moved last Thursday after a 10-day hospital stay at Bellevue Hospital where he underwent a procedure to clear a heart blockage.
Prosecutors portrayed Weinstein as a serial predator who had manipulated women with promises to open doors in Hollywood, coaxing them to hotel rooms or private apartments and then overpowering and violently attacking them.
Be the first to comment