Jury deliberations in Harvey Weinstein's retrial in New York begin

CBS News

a day ago

Harvey Weinstein's sex crimes retrial has reached its final stage.
The jury began deliberations, but not without drama in the courtroom beforehand. is now in the hands of a jury in New York City.
One of the jurors who had been listening to the trial for weeks got sick just as deliberations were set to begin. Juror 8 didn't show up Thursday morning, and was replaced by an alternate juror to begin deliberations.
CBS News New York's Lisa Rozner reports Juror 8 was somebody Weinstein's defense wanted as part of the trial and therefore the deliberations, so much so that Weinstein's legal team initially threatened to move for a mistrial if the judge didn't give Juror 8 more time to potentially show up.
Eventually, the judge dismissed that as a possibility, saying that even though the defense "chose" the juror, "the purpose of an alternate juror is for this very reason." The judge then began instructing the jurors on deliberations just before 11 a.m.
Juror 8 was female, as is her replacement, Alternate Juror 1.
Weinstein addresses court after jury starts deliberations
Deliberations began at 11:30 a.m. After the jury left, Weinstein asked to address the court.
"Your honor I'd like to thank your team, court officers, security, all the people who were just and fair with me and with the exception of the captain - I'm kidding," Weinstein said. "Just seriously, I've been treated incredibly fairly. The court officers, the court clerks, everybody I just want to thank from the bottom of my heart. I appreciate you all."
The judge then thanked Weinstein for his comments.
Closing arguments in Harvey Weinstein retrial
The defense requested a mistrial Wednesday morning, claiming the Manhattan District Attorney's office forced some witnesses to testify, but the judge turned down the request.
The jury was brought in around 10:30 a.m. to hear the rest of the prosecution's closing arguments. The defense spoke for nearly three hours Tuesday in its closing statements.
The prosecution kept it serious, portraying Weinstein as a sexual predator, while the defense was animated, cracking jokes that incited laughter from the jury box and telling them Weinstein was the true victim.
The 73-year-old's lawyer, Arthur Aidala, told the jury Tuesday, "I know this is going to sound crazy, but he's the one getting abused." He alleged the accusers used Weinstein for fame and fortune and that everything was consensual.
The prosecution called those remarks offensive and said, "He had enormous power and control over the entertainment industry for over 30 years, he decided who was in and who was out," adding Weinstein "was not used to the word 'no.'"
What is Weinstein accused of in this case?
Two accusers -- former production assistant Miriam Haley and actress Jessica Mann -- testified during the retrial and at Weinstein's first trial in 2020. Haley alleged Weinstein forcibly performed oral sex on her in July 2006, and Mann alleged he raped her at at New York hotel in 2023.
Former model Kaja Sokola alleged Weinstein forcibly performed oral sex on her in 2006 when she was 19 years old. She was not part of the original trial.
Weinstein is charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sex act and one count of third-degree rape. Both carry a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison. He has pleaded not guilty.
Weinstein's 2020 conviction was overturned last year when the state's highest court ruled the judge should not have allowed testimony from other accusers who were not part of the criminal charges. He was then held at Rikers Island for several months leading up to his retrial.
Weinstein was also convicted in 2022 of sexual assault in Los Angeles and was sentenced to 16 years in prison.