Weinstein was sentenced to another 16 years in prison.
Photo: REUTERS
The first trial of Harvey Weinstein, the legendary Hollywood producer who released Pulp Fiction, Shakespeare in Love, Chicago, The Aviator and dozens of other famous films, took place in 2020 in New York. He was sentenced to 23 years in prison after being found guilty of sexually assaulting one woman and raping another. The process was preceded by a huge scandal: dozens of women, from secretaries to world-famous actresses like Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie, said that Weinstein abused them, trying to persuade them to have sex. With big movie stars, he rarely succeeded. But many women found themselves involved in erotic episodes in some way… although no, not erotic, just disgustingly obscene.
And then a new process began, this time in Los Angeles. Once again, the accusations were made by several women, including the current wife of the Governor of California, Jennifer Siebel Newsom. However, the jury found that it was generally too difficult to prove these allegations.
But Weinstein couldn’t fight a woman. This is a type of model, apparently of Russian origin; His name is unknown, she appeared in the case file as Jane Doe No. 1 (“Jane Doe” or “John Doe” in common law are standard pseudonyms for those who do not wish to reveal their identity in court). She said that she flew to the United States for an Italian film festival, she met Weinstein, who lured her to a hotel room and raped her. And then the violence was repeated two more times.
According to Variety, Jane Doe No. 1 arrived in the courtroom with her daughter and cried when she was asked questions and when she heard Weinstein’s objections. “No amount of jail time will be enough to erase the damage that was done to them,” she said. “I hope they give him the longest possible sentence.” I carried this burden, this injury, for many years, I thought it was my fault. Until that night, I was a happy and self-confident woman… I thought about my future with joy… And then everything changed… Inside, I broke into pieces. I punished myself for what she did to me.”
At the same time, Weinstein said: “I don’t know this woman and she doesn’t know me. This is a fictional story. With all due respect, Jane Doe No. 1 is an actress, and she can turn tears on… This is not true. And in the last speech, the defendant said: “I insist that I am innocent. This whole story is about money. I am being followed. Please don’t give me a life sentence. There are so many things wrong with this case. There is no evidence… It’s a trap… I’m asking for mercy.”
But mercy was denied. Nor did the exhortations of lawyers help, who insisted that Weinstein was in poor health and the father of five children, for whom he became “a disembodied voice on the phone.” Weinstein was sentenced to another 16 years in prison. That is, he will have to spend another 36 years behind bars (he has already served three years according to the previous sentence). And now he is 70 years old, that is, he should be released at 106 years old. With all due respect, it is unlikely that he will be long-lived.
