The first sexual harassment allegations toward film producer Harvey Weinstein sent shock waves through Hollywood in October 2017. The allegations led to his termination from The Weinstein Company, and served as a catalyst to the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements. Weinstein was recently hit with three new charges that can end him in prison for life.
District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. has confirmed that a Grand Jury in Manhattan formally accused the producer of “some of the most serious sexual offenses that exist under New York’s Penal Law.” Weinstein has been charged with one additional account of Sexual Assault in the First Degree and two counts of Predatory Sexual Assault. In May 2018, Harvey Weinstein was first charged by the New York City Police Department with “rape, criminal sex act, sex abuse and sexual misconduct for incidents involving two separate women.” Should the shamed producer be convicted on the charges, the maximum sentence for his wrongdoings could be life in prison.
At this point, close to a dozen lawsuits have been filed against Weinstein with over 80 women who have come forward to accuse him of sexual harassment or sexual assault. After his surrender on May 25, Harvey Weinstein was released on bail but made to surrender his passport and wear an ankle bracelet that confines him to New York and Connecticut.
The Los Angeles Police Department, as well as London’s Metropolitan Police, have been conducting criminal investigations into the disgraced movie mogul. The producer has been terminated from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and his company filed for bankruptcy.
