Prosecutors Drop Criminal Proceedings Against Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced Hollywood producer and a central figure in the #MeToo movement, will not face charges of indecent assault in the UK, as announced by prosecutors. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided to discontinue proceedings due to a lack of sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction. This decision follows the authorization of two charges of indecent assault against Weinstein related to an incident in London from 1996.
Despite the absence of charges in Britain, Weinstein is currently serving time in New York for previous sexual assault convictions, including a 23-year sentence from a 2020 case. He is awaiting retrial in Manhattan after the state’s top court annulled one of his convictions, citing judicial errors. Weinstein’s past allegations span back to the 1980s, leading to extensive investigations by British authorities. The CPS has encouraged any potential victims of sexual assault to come forward and report incidents to the police.
Disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein will not face charges of indecent assault in Britain, prosecutors announced on Thursday.
The Crown Prosecution Service, which in 2022 authorized two charges of indecent assault against Weinstein, said it decided to discontinue proceedings because there was “no longer a realistic prospect of conviction.’’
“We have explained our decision to all parties,’’ the CPS said in a statement. ’’We would always encourage any potential victims of sexual assault to come forward and report to police, and we will prosecute wherever our legal test is met.”
Weinstein became the most prominent villain of the #MeToo movement in 2017 when women began to go public with accounts of his behavior. After the revelations emerged, British police said they were investigating multiple allegations of sexual assault that reportedly took place between the 1980s and 2015.
In June 2022, the Crown Prosecution Service said it had authorized London’s Metropolitan Police Service to file two charges of indecent assault against Weinstein in relation to an alleged incident that occurred in London in 1996. The victim was in her 50s at the time of the announcement.
Unlike many other countries, Britain does not have a statute of limitations for rape or sexual assault.
Weinstein, who has denied that he raped or sexually assaulted anyone, remains in custody in New York while awaiting retrial in Manhattan, prosecutors said in August.
After the retrial, he is due to start serving a 16-year sentence in California for a separate rape conviction in Los Angeles, authorities said. Weinstein was convicted in Los Angeles in 2022 while already serving a 23-year sentence in New York.
His 2020 conviction in Manhattan was thrown out earlier this year when the state’s top court ruled that the judge in the original trial unfairly allowed testimony against Weinstein based on allegations that weren’t part of the case.
Weinstein, the co-founder of the Miramax entertainment company and The Weinstein Company film studio, was once one of the most powerful people in Hollywood, having produced films such as “Pulp Fiction” and “The Crying Game.”
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