Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein's conviction overturned by NY's top court

Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein's conviction was overturned by New York's top court, according to The New York Times.

New York County prosecutors are faced with a decision either to retry the Hollywood producer, the Times reported. The conviction was overturned on a 4-3 decision in the New York Court of Appeals. 

In the appeal, the judge who presided initially in Weinstein's trial allowed prosecutors to call as witnesses women who said the film producer assaulted them, but their accusations were not part of the charges against him, something the Times report labeled as a "crucial mistake." According to ABC News, the judge had "erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes."

The sexual abuse case of Weinstein, 72, sparked the #MeToo movement on social media after reports came out of him utilizing his power to take advantage of actresses in the Hollywood industry. Actresses such as Ashley Judd and Uma Thurman came forward against Weinstein.

He was first arrested in 2018, then convicted in 2020 to 23 years in prison for first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape. Weinstein had then been sentenced in 2023 to 16 years on charges of rape and sexual assault in Los Angeles.

Will there be a retrial?

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg will decide if Weinstein will undergo a retrial. Bragg is already in the midst of a trial against former US President Donald Trump, the Times noted. The report by ABC quoted Bragg's spokeswoman, who said, "We will do everything in our power to retry this case and remain steadfast in our commitment to survivors of sexual assault."

Weinstein is currently being held at the Mohawk Correctional Facility in Rome, New York, but the ruling does not make him a free man because of his conviction already in California, and will instead be transferred to prison authorities there.

Juda Engelmayer, the spokesperson for Weinstein, told ABC News "We are happily surprised and we are studying the ruling," in a report that also noted that the Hollywood producer's team did not expect the ruling to go in his favor. Meanwhile, his lawyer, Arthur Aidala, was quoted by the Associated Press saying “We all worked very hard and this is a tremendous victory for every criminal defendant in the state of New York.”

Weinstein has said that any sexual activity was consensual, the Press reported, and that he maintains his innocence.