Three Asian women victims of Harvey Weinstein were satisfied with verdicts after a Los Angeles jury convicted former movie mogul Harvey Weinstein Monday of one count of rape and two counts of sexual assault.
After deliberating 10 days, the Los Angeles jury failed to reach verdicts on the rape and oral copulation charges related to Jennifer Seibel Newsom, the wife of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and the sexual battery by restraint charge involving writer Lauren Young. Mistrials were declared in Newsom's and Young's cases.
Filipino American Young and Ambra Gutierrez, a Filipino Italian model, testified during the trial. Rowena Chiu, who was was also assaulted by Weinstein, had mixed feelings about the verdict. “I’m thankful that it’s not a complete acquittal across the board,” she says.
Young, referred to during the trial as Jane Doe 2, told her attorney Gloria Allred by phone she was happy Weinstein was convicted on some counts despite there being a mistrial on her own count, Allred said in a news conference after the verdict.
“I am relieved that Harvey Weinstein has been convicted because he deserves to be punished for the crimes that he committed, and he can no longer use his power to intimidate and sexually assault more women,” Young said in a statement read by Allred.
Allred said after the verdict that her client was “100 percent committed to testifying again if she was asked to do so.”
Young, referred to during the trial as Jane Doe 2, told her attorney Gloria Allred by phone she was happy Weinstein was convicted on some counts despite there being a mistrial on her own count, Allred said in a news conference after the verdict.
“I am relieved that Harvey Weinstein has been convicted because he deserves to be punished for the crimes that he committed, and he can no longer use his power to intimidate and sexually assault more women,” Young said in a statement read by Allred.
Allred said after the verdict that her client was “100 percent committed to testifying again if she was asked to do so.”
During the trial, Young gave tearful testimony about her how she was sexually assaulted by Weinstein in a Beverly Hills hotel bathroom in 2013 while repeatedly telling him “no.”
Young said she was paralyzed by fear when Harvey Weinstein blocked her from leaving the bathroom, masturbated in front of her and groped her breasts.
In early 2013, Young was a model who was aspiring to be an actress and screenwriter, and through Weinstein’s assistant, who had become a friend, she set up a meeting with him at the Montage Hotel on the night of Feb. 19, 2013, about a script she was working on.
During the meeting, Weinstein told her she should accompany him to his room to continue the talk while he got ready for an event.
Young said Weinstein led her into the room and then the bathroom, and his assistant shut the door behind them and left them alone. That's when she was groped and he masturbated.
During the meeting, Weinstein told her she should accompany him to his room to continue the talk while he got ready for an event.
Young said Weinstein led her into the room and then the bathroom, and his assistant shut the door behind them and left them alone. That's when she was groped and he masturbated.
“I was scared of Harvey Weinstein — that he would hurt me, or send someone to hurt me, or ruin my career, or make my life hell,” Young testified.
She said she was stunned as he quickly shed his suit and got briefly in the shower, then stepped out and blocked her from leaving when she went for the door.
She said she was stunned as he quickly shed his suit and got briefly in the shower, then stepped out and blocked her from leaving when she went for the door.
Prosecutor's used Gutierrez's testimony to show a pattern of behavior but none of the charges Weinstein is facing in Los Angeles stem from her allegations.
She was at the center of a NYPD sting operation in 2015 when she had cooperated with police to wear a wire and record Weinstein, following her allegations that he had groped her breasts and put his hand up her skirt during a casting meeting.
The investigation and the publicity surrounding the investigation led to more witnesses to come forth to testify about their Weinstein encounters.
Gutierrez’s audio recording became a smoking gun when it was later published in Ronan Farrow’s Weinstein exposé in The New Yorker in October 2017.
In 2020, Weinstein was convicted in New York of committing a criminal sexual act in the first degree and third-degree rape. He was sentenced to 23 years in state prison. The conviction energized the #MeToo movement, which sparked a worldwide reckoning on sexual assault and harassment more than two years ago.
A New York judge this week granted an appeal of the conviction.
Rowena Chiu, who worked for Weinstein in London in the 1990s, said, “Our worst nightmare was that he would get acquitted in L.A. and use that to support his appeal in N.Y.”
But the verdicts on Jane Does 2, 3 and 4 left Chiu “staggered,” she says. Chiu, who has alleged that Weinstein attempted to rape her at the Venice Film Festival in 1998, had originally been scheduled to be a supporting witness in the L.A. trial, but ultimately was not called.
“I see desperate failings in the legal system,” she told the Los Angeles Times. “I feel that it’s very personal. My reaction was almost a visceral anger at how much these women had been put through to take the stand. The fact that the legal system puts such a burden on the witness, challenges the survivor’s credibility. It is a horrifying and brutal process. What sort of signal does that give women of the #MeToo movement who are really struggling? A staggering percentage of rape victims know they’re not going to be believed.”
More than 90 women have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct including rape, unwanted touching and harassment. Allegations and convictions against the formerly influential Hollywood producers prompted the #MeToo movement.
"In 2015, when I worked with the police, they were able to put it on tape and had him saying what he did to me," Gutierrez said on "CBS Mornings" Tuesday. "It was recorded, and there was video footage on security cameras."
Gutierrez said at the time, police tried to help her but Weinstein was able to avoid charges at the time.
"The police tried to help me, they tried to do as much as they could," she said. "But he was so powerful, he was able to just make me not believable."
Gutierrez said at the time, police tried to help her but Weinstein was able to avoid charges at the time.
"The police tried to help me, they tried to do as much as they could," she said. "But he was so powerful, he was able to just make me not believable."
Of the Los Angeles verdict, Gutierrez told CBS Morning's hosts, "It's a feeling of being powerful again," she said.
 |
| Harvey Weinstein |
Rowena Chiu, who worked for Weinstein in London in the 1990s, said, “Our worst nightmare was that he would get acquitted in L.A. and use that to support his appeal in N.Y.”
But the verdicts on Jane Does 2, 3 and 4 left Chiu “staggered,” she says. Chiu, who has alleged that Weinstein attempted to rape her at the Venice Film Festival in 1998, had originally been scheduled to be a supporting witness in the L.A. trial, but ultimately was not called.
“I see desperate failings in the legal system,” she told the Los Angeles Times. “I feel that it’s very personal. My reaction was almost a visceral anger at how much these women had been put through to take the stand. The fact that the legal system puts such a burden on the witness, challenges the survivor’s credibility. It is a horrifying and brutal process. What sort of signal does that give women of the #MeToo movement who are really struggling? A staggering percentage of rape victims know they’re not going to be believed.”
More than 90 women have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct including rape, unwanted touching and harassment. Allegations and convictions against the formerly influential Hollywood producers prompted the #MeToo movement.
Throughout the New York and Los Angeles trials, Weinstein has professed his innocence and claims some of the sexual encounters were consensual.
The L.A. jury convicted Weinstein only on the charges leveled by Jane Doe 1, an Italian model and actress. A juror, who did not want his name used, told reporters that because Jane Doe 1 never contacted Weinstein again after she was assaulted lent more credibility to her charges. The other Jane Does follow-up calls and emails to the producer weakened their accusations, he said.
Newsom, identified in the trial as Jane Doe 3, testified against Weinstein and disclosed that she was harassed by the producer, shared a statement on Twitter in response to the verdict. The tweet read, "Harvey Weinstein will never be able to rape another woman. He will spend the rest of his life behind bars where he belongs. Harvey Weinstein is a serial predator and what he did was rape."
"Throughout the trial, Weinstein’s lawyers used sexism, misogyny, and bullying tactics to intimate, demean and ridicule us survivors," Jennifer added. "This trail was a stark reminder that we as a society have work to do. To all survivors out there — I see you, I hear you, and I stand with you."
The L.A. jury convicted Weinstein only on the charges leveled by Jane Doe 1, an Italian model and actress. A juror, who did not want his name used, told reporters that because Jane Doe 1 never contacted Weinstein again after she was assaulted lent more credibility to her charges. The other Jane Does follow-up calls and emails to the producer weakened their accusations, he said.
Newsom, identified in the trial as Jane Doe 3, testified against Weinstein and disclosed that she was harassed by the producer, shared a statement on Twitter in response to the verdict. The tweet read, "Harvey Weinstein will never be able to rape another woman. He will spend the rest of his life behind bars where he belongs. Harvey Weinstein is a serial predator and what he did was rape."
"Throughout the trial, Weinstein’s lawyers used sexism, misogyny, and bullying tactics to intimate, demean and ridicule us survivors," Jennifer added. "This trail was a stark reminder that we as a society have work to do. To all survivors out there — I see you, I hear you, and I stand with you."
EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.
No comments:
Post a Comment