Weinstein's prison sentence should reflect 'lifetime of abuse' - prosecutors

[rooster59]

Weinstein's prison sentence should reflect 'lifetime of abuse' - prosecutors

By Brendan Pierson

 

FILE PHOTO: Film producer Harvey Weinstein arrives at the New York Criminal Court during his ongoing sexual assault trial in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., February 24, 2020. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo

 

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former movie producer Harvey Weinstein should get a prison sentence that reflects not only his conviction for sexually assaulting two women, but a "lifetime of abuse towards others," New York prosecutors said in a court filing on Friday.

 

Throughout his adult life, Weinstein has shown a "staggering lack of empathy, treating others with disdain and inhumanity," Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance's office said in a letter to Justice James Burke, who is scheduled to sentence Weinstein on Wednesday.

 

"He has consistently advanced his own sordid desires and fixations over the well-being of others," prosecutors wrote. "He has destroyed people's lives and livelihoods or threatened to do so on whim."

 

Prosecutors did not recommend a specific sentence in the filing for Weinstein, who faces a maximum sentence of 29 years in prison.

 

Donna Rotunno, a lawyer for Weinstein, had no immediate comment.

 

On Feb. 24, a jury found the former movie mogul guilty of sexually assaulting former production assistant Mimi Haleyi in 2006 and of raping onetime aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013.

 

The jury of seven men and five women acquitted Weinstein on the most serious charges, which carried a potential life sentence. Those charges relied on testimony by actress Annabella Sciorra, who said Weinstein raped her in the early 1990s.

 

In addition to Haleyi, Mann and Sciorra, prosecutors called three more women to testify against Weinstein, portraying him as a serial predator who had manipulated women with promises to open doors in Hollywood, coaxing them to hotel rooms or private apartments, and then overpowering and violently attacking them.

 

Throughout Weinstein's trial, the defence said regret drove his accusers to reframe consensual encounters as crimes. Weinstein's lawyers zeroed in on friendly messages and ongoing contact between the women and Weinstein.

 

More than 80 women, including famous actresses, have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct stretching back decades, fuelling the #MeToo movement against sexual abuse and harassment. He denied the accusations and said any sexual encounters were consensual.

 

In Friday's filing, prosecutors listed more than a dozen accusations going back to 1978, when they said he sexually assaulted an employee of his Buffalo, New York-based music company in a hotel room. The prosecutors argued Justice Burke should consider the alleged incidents even though they were never criminally charged.

 

They also accused Weinstein of verbally and physically abusive behaviour in the workplace dating back to the 1990s.

 

Weinstein is awaiting sentencing in New York's Rikers Island jail, where he was moved Thursday after a 10-day hospital stay following his conviction.

 

He still faces sexual assault charges in Los Angeles, which were announced just hours after his New York trial began on Jan. 6. Dozens of women have also filed civil lawsuits against him.

 

(Reporting by Brendan Pierson in New York; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Jonathan Oatis)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-03-07

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[Mick501]

Bizarre thing for a prosecutor to say.   They want him sentenced based on assumed criteria other than the crimes and circumstances for which he has been convicted?   Riiight.

[rgraham]

Appears to be a monkey trial lacking facts and based mostly on she said, he said. Guy probably is a sleeze but prison?

[from the home of CC]

trash soon to be treated as such, for a very long time..

[PJPom]

If he ever opens his mouth as to the people he has had “ consenting sex “ with there will be an amazing number of very successful actresses very red faced. There was an interview with a very successful singer who when asked how she got her big break candidly replied “ I knew who to sleep with” , she is still a star. 
The me too movement just seems to be a money grabbing racket for so many, they tend to overwhelm the victims who suffered and of course you dare not question their truthfulness. 
I wonder if he too will be found dead in a cell, suicide of course.

[twocatsmac]

He manipulated and coaxed, verbally abused blah blah.

Did he actually physically rape anyone?

I hate rapists but this looks like a kangaroo court fueled by the men haters that nobody dare stand up to.

[Susco]

Yesterday there was an article in a newspaper in my country, where one of the most prominent lawyers of the country stated that they didn't recruit any women anymore because of the Me Too movement.

 

They already had their own first problems with a trainee.

 

I believe that there are currently many big companies worldwide who share that opinion

[curlylekan]

Someone like this, at that age, just like Cosby, needs other types of sentencing and REAL rehabilitation needs to be addressed. Throughout the world, rehabilitation is never addressed well enough and society suffers as we end up with people who people more devious and violent than when they went in.

[White Christmas13]

4 hours ago, twocatsmac said:

He manipulated and coaxed, verbally abused blah blah.

Did he actually physically rape anyone?

I hate rapists but this looks like a kangaroo court fueled by the men haters that nobody dare stand up to.

Yes and they tried to put Julian Assange in to jail for 175 years who has

done nothing wrong but telling the trues.

[PatOngo]

6 hours ago, rgraham said:

Guy probably is a sleeze but prison?

I hope he becomes somebodies bitch, there must guys in there who like ugly!

[AgMech Cowboy]

On 3/7/2020 at 6:36 PM, rooster59 said:

but a "lifetime of abuse towards others," New York prosecutors said in a court filing on Friday.

Minus one month for all the phrase heaped on him by the media, stars and politicians. They made him feel empowered and invincible. I never could understand why he was so 'great', but I guess they liked the color of his money.