New law could destroy defense that saw Harvey Weinstein's sex crime conviction tossed
Former film mogul Harvey Weinstein got a break last month when a New York appeals court tossed his sexual assault conviction, ruling that the prosecutors improperly used prior bad acts as evidence at his trial.
But the outrage over that decision might mean New York could swiftly change how sexual assault cases are prosecuted — and he could find himself swiftly convicted on the same evidence when he is retried.
According to The Daily Beast, "As prosecutors prepare to retry him, a new bill making its way through the New York state legislature could give them a powerful weapon. The bill, introduced by state Assemblymember Amy Paulin, would allow evidence of prior bad acts to be admitted in sexual assault trials ... Survivors hope the bill would allow witnesses who say Weinstein assaulted them to testify again, even though he is not charged with crimes related to those incidents."
Weinstein, once a titan in Hollywood, has had more than 100 women come forward to describe horrific acts of rape and abuse at his hands.
“After we saw that the judge had allowed [this] evidence, we just wanted to be sure that we were covered,” said Paulin, herself a sexual assault survivor. “I didn't expect to need the bill, but as it turned out, it was a good thing.” The bill is currently in committee, and Paulin is hopeful it can be passed before the current legislative session ends next month.
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Regardless of the legislation's passage or the outcome of the new trial, Weinstein will remain behind bars because he was separately convicted on charges in California. But New York lawmakers hope this legislation will allow for easier prosecution in future cases.
"Weinstein survivors and accusers are rallying around the bill, hoping to get it enacted before the retrial. A coalition holding a press conference Thursday at the New York headquarters of the National Organization for Women includes Ambra Gutierrez, a model who told police that Weintein assaulted her in 2015 but never saw charges filed," said the report, with Gutteirez telling The Daily Beast, “I was really surprised when the conviction was overturned over the fact that a lot of victims were speaking about their experience. So I just feel and believe firmly that something like this has to be fixed, because it’s really nonsense.”