Harvey Weinstein has been found guilty of two charges in his sexual assault trial, which will see him faced with up to 25 years in prison. The Hollywood producer has been accused of sexually assaulting dozens of women throughout his career, and was found guilty in court of a criminal sex act for assaulting production assistant Mimi Haleyi in 2006, and for third-degree rape for his attack of Jessica Mann in 2013. The jury found Harvey not guilty of predatory sexual assault.
Harvey was found guilty on two counts
Speaking about her client, his lawyer Donna Rotunno said: "Harvey is unbelievably strong. He took it like a man. He knows that we will continue to fight for him, and we know that this is not over." Another one of his lawyers, Arthur Aidala, said that Harvey had claimed: "I'm innocent, how can this happen in America?" The 67-year-old will also be facing sexual assault charges in Los Angeles. Following the verdict, Harvey was taken to Bellevue hospital, which provides medical care to prisoners, with his representative Juda Engelmayer describing his hospital stay as a "precautionary measure", while it was reported that he was suffering from chest pains.
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Weinsten accuser Ambra Battilana Gutierrez spoke out following the verdict
Around 80 women have come forward to accuse Harvey of sexual misconduct, including Uma Thurman, Gwyneth Paltrow and Rose McGowan, but were unable to press charges due to the statute of limitations. The accusations sparked the #MeToo movement, which aimed to end sexual harassment and assault. Speaking to BBC's Newshour following the verdict, Rose said: "The little girl I was when I was hurt, she's ecstatic...This is a great day. The trash has been taken out.... The fact that we are white women and attractive and of some means and it still took this many of us to even get him to have one day in court - just tells you…how almost impossible it is to even be heard, period, let alone [get] any kind of conviction."
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