Harvey Weinstein has been seen for the first time since an appeals court overturned his 2020 conviction last week.
The disgraced movie mogul, 72, had his hands cuffed as he was wheeled from a prison van into a Manhattan courtroom on Wednesday.
Weinstein, dressed in a navy blue suit with the label still visible on the sleeve, was sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault in the New York case.
But in a shocking twist, the New York Court of Appeals ruled that the film producer did not receive a fair trial when he was convicted, effectively erasing his 23-year prison sentence and ordering a new trial.
DailyMail.com snapped exclusive photos of Harvey Weinstein entering the Manhattan courthouse on Wednesday.
This is Weinstein’s first court appearance in New York since a state appeals court overturned his 2020 conviction.
The disgraced movie mogul, 72, had his hands cuffed as he was wheeled from a prison van into a Manhattan courtroom on Wednesday.
Weinstein, dressed in a navy blue suit and tie, was sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault in the New York case.
Last week’s ruling found that a trial judge allowed jurors to see and hear too much evidence that was not directly related to the charges he faced.
Prosecutors said they intend to retry him on charges of forcibly performing oral sex on a film and television production assistant in 2006 and raping an aspiring actress in 2013.
After his conviction was overturned in New York, he cried tears of joy and insisted he was not a rapist, his spokeswoman said.
Weinstein is serving 23 years in a New York prison for the two sexual attacks against aspiring actress Jessica Mann and production assistant Mimi Haleyi.
He was given an additional 16 years after a Los Angeles jury found him guilty of three counts of rape and sexual assault in 2022.
In a sign of how important the case is, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg came to court Wednesday and sat in the second row of the public gallery.
Jessica Mann, who testified against Weinstein at trial (he was convicted of third-degree rape against her), was sitting in the same row as Bragg.
Prosecutor Nicole Blumberg told the court they were asking that Weinstein remain in custody.
They called it a “strong case in 2020 when the defendant was tried and convicted” and “remains a strong case in 2024.”
The court heard that the appeal ruling was “unequivocal on the issue of consent” and that there was “nothing consensual about the conduct described by the plaintiffs.”
Prosecutors told the court: “We believe in this case and we will prosecute it.”
‘Jessica Mann is here in court. She is here to show that she is not backing down and that she is committed to getting justice done again.
‘The accused may have power and privileges, but she has the truth. We firmly believe that the defendant will be convicted again after the trial.’
Prosecutors said they wanted the trial to be held in the fall, possibly in September.
Weinstein’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, told the court: “We are not asking for bail.” “Mr. Weinstein has very, very serious medical problems.”
He praised the Department of Corrections for addressing Weinstein’s needs.
He said, “He’s very smart.” She is as smart as she always was. He has read hundreds and hundreds of books. I don’t have any problem with his mental abilities.’
Aidala dismissed the idea that it was a “strong case” and said Weinstein was acquitted of the most serious charges, including first-degree rape.
Aidala claimed that Mimi Haleyi, whose allegations led to Weinstein being convicted of a criminal sexual act, may have committed perjury during the trial.
According to Aidala, Weinstein recently told her: ‘Let’s go to trial and prove my innocence.’
Harvey Weinstein appears in court Wednesday in his first public appearance since his conviction was overturned.
Weinstein is seen sitting next to his legal team on Wednesday. Prosecutors told the court: “We believe in this case and we will prosecute it.”
Weinstein’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, told the court: “We are not asking for bail.” Mr. Weinstein has very, very serious medical problems.
Judge Curtis Farber remanded Weinstein into custody and set a tentative trial date after Labor Day, meaning it could be in September.
The next court date will be May 29, the judge ruled.
As Weinstein was led out (he wasn’t handcuffed or in leg shackles), he shook hands with his entire legal team, one by one, and gave a thumbs up to his spokesperson, who was sitting at the end of the row.
Mann stared at him.
During his four years in prison, Weinstein has been plagued by health problems, including heart problems, mobility problems and diabetes.
Last week he was taken to Bellevue Hospital in New York, where doctors performed a series of tests.
Attorney Arthur Aidala said Weinstein was taken to the hospital after his arrival Friday at Rikers Island.
Aidala said: ‘They examined him and sent him to Bellevue. He looks like he needs a lot of physical help. He has many problems. They are doing all kinds of tests on him. As for his health, he is a disaster.
‘They didn’t treat him well. They refused to give him even a sip of water, food, or go to the bathroom,” Aidala said. “He is a sickly 72-year-old man.”
Weinstein was once the most powerful man in Hollywood, making hits like Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love with his film companies Miramax and The Weinstein Co.
He dominated Hollywood in the 1990s, winning 81 Oscars while becoming part of the global elite and becoming especially close to Bill and Hillary Clinton.
Now The Weinstein Co. is bankrupt, his wife Georgina Chapman has divorced him, and his empire is in ruins.
One of Weinstein’s main accusers in the case, Mimi Haleyi, has said she is not sure she will be ready to testify again should the case be retried.
The overturning of his conviction is the second major #MeToo setback in the past two years, after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of a Pennsylvania court decision throwing out his sexual assault conviction. Bill Cosby.
Weinstein’s conviction stood for more than four years, heralded by activists and advocates as a historic achievement but just as quickly scrutinized by his lawyers and, later, by the Court of Appeals when it heard arguments on the matter in February. .
New York State Chief Appeals Judge Janet DiFiore ruled that Weinstein’s appeal could proceed in 2022.
Weinstein, pictured with ex-wife Georgina Chapman in happier times, was a titan of the film industry before sexual abuse allegations made him the face of the #MeToo movement.
Weinstein was convicted in 2020 of raping Jessica Mann (pictured in court in 2020) at her Manhattan home in 2013.
He was also convicted of sexually assaulting production assistant Mimi Haleyi, seen walking to his sentencing in New York in 2020.
Allegations against Weinstein first emerged in a 2017 New York Times article that named actress Rose McGowan, photographed on the first day of her trial in New York in 2020.
McGowan, pictured with Weinstein in 2007, claimed the Miramax boss raped her in 1997.
At the time, his lawyer Arthur Aidala argued that women who were not part of the criminal allegations should not have been allowed to take the stand and testify about alleged sexual abuse by his client.
He also alleged that a juror failed to disclose that he had previously written a book about sexual predators, which he said should have disqualified them from serving.
Weinstein denied the charges against him and insisted that his relationships with the women were consensual.
More than 80 women came forward to accuse the Oscar-winning producer of sexual assault and harassment.
The allegations first emerged publicly in a 2017 New York Times article detailing decades of alleged abuse.
Actresses Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd were among those named in the article as accusers.
The allegations sparked a sea change in attitudes toward sexual misconduct in the workplace.