Harvey Weinstein jailed for 23 years in rape case
Former Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in jail for rape and sexual assault.
Weinstein was given 20 years for a first-degree criminal sex act and three years for third-degree rape. Both sentences will run consecutively, a judge in New York ruled.
Both the main accusers, as well as the four other witnesses from trial came into court as a united group on Wednesday. Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, the New York Times reporters who first published the Weinstein story triggering the #MeToo movement also sat in the courtroom.
As a result of the first accusations, scores of women came out and accused Weinstein of sexual assault. The women included former employees and workers in the film industry, leading to a chain of accusations against other film and television personalities and moguls.
“He has been using and abusing people his whole life,” said prosecutor Joan Illuzzi at court.
Lawyers for the now convicted rapist, pleaded with the judge for the minimum sentence of five years in prison due to his delicate health conditions.
The sex offender also addressed the court personally and said he was “confused” in his dealings with the women. “I’m totally confused, men are confused about all of this issue.”
“I really fear remorse for this situation, I feel it deeply in my heart,” adding: “We may have different truths”.”
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said in a statement: “We thank the court for imposing a sentence that puts sexual predators and abusive partners in all segments of society on notice. We thank the survivors for their remarkable statements today and indescribable courage over the last two years.”
“Harvey Weinstein deployed nothing less than an army of spies to keep them silent. But they refused to be silent, and they were heard,” Vance said. “Their words took down a predator and put him behind bars, and gave hope to survivors of sexual violence all across the world.”
Weinstein still faces pending criminal charges in Los Angeles for allegedly raping one woman and sexually assaulting a second woman over a two-day period in 2013.