Harvey Weinstein accuser Jessica Mann stares down movie mogul in court after she recounts alleged rape
NEW YORK — Harvey Weinstein accuser Jessica Mann stared down the disgraced movie mogul after taking the witness stand Tuesday, pointing a finger at her eyes as she stalked past the defense table in Manhattan Supreme Court.
Mann, 39, had just finished an emotional recounting of how Weinstein violently raped her in a California hotel at the former Miramax Films head's retrial on sexual assault charges.
That finger gesture, and her testimony, led defense lawyer Arthur Aidala to move for a mistrial, calling the description of the alleged Peninsula Hotel attack, which he isn't charged with, 'highly prejudicial.'
'That's absolutely inappropriate, that's inappropriate behavior by her,' Aidala said. Judge Curtis Farber rejected his calls for a mistrial, bringing the number of unsuccessful mistrial motions by Aidala up to nine.
Mann, whose testimony began Monday, also took the stand in Weinstein's 2020 trial, but the ex-producer's guilty verdict and 23-year prison sentence was overturned by the state's highest court last year.
The retrial, which is in its fifth week, also featured days of testimony from two other accusers, former TV production assistant Miriam Haley — who also took the stand in 2020 — and Polish model and aspiring actress Kaja Sokola.
Mann testified Monday that she met the then-married Weinstein in late 2012 or early 2013, and embarked on a 'relationship' with him despite his forcibly performing oral sex on her in a Midtown hotel in March 2013.
Her testimony Tuesday morning centered on an encounter in the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills. Mann was getting into a serious relationship with an actor, she said, and she wanted a sit-down meeting with Weinstein. 'I just wanted this agreement that I would be moving on with my life,' she said.
But when she wouldn't give up her beau's name, Weinstein exploded in fury, she said.
'His eyes went black, and he was angry,' she said. 'He went into a rage. He lunged at me ... he grabbed me and was pulling me into the room, and it happened to me so fast and so forceful.'
She added, 'He dragged me into the bedroom and he threw me on the bed, and he said, 'You owe me one more time.''
Mann said he ripped her pants with such force that his fingernails left scratch marks on her legs. She curled into a ball by the headboard, paralyzed by fear, and he grabbed her ankles, pulled her down and started raping her, she testified.
'At some point I remember his weight on me, and there's so much weight on me. And my head was stuck, and I couldn't breathe. And I just remember everything went black,' she said. She came to on her knees, with Weinstein forcing her into performing oral sex, said.
'And he was done, and I crawled to the bathroom, and I got up, and I remember that I saw myself in the mirror but I didn't know it was me for a moment, and I didn't recognize myself,' she said.
Mann appeared overcome with emotion as she described the alleged attack, and had to take a break from her testimony. The pointing incident happened as she left the courtroom.
Mann said she was so disoriented she couldn't drive home, and she weighed going to the police and agreeing to take a rape exam at a hospital, but decided against it.
'I just imagined more poking and prodding, and I just imagined I would have to say his name,' she said. 'And I didn't know what happened if I would say his name.' So she took an hourslong shower, resolving, 'I'm going to bury this so deep, and I'm going to forget about this and move on with my life.'
Weinstein does not face charges in connection with the allegations from the Peninsula Hotel. Rather, he's charged in connection with the March 2013 rape at Manhattan's DoubleTree Hotel.
Over the next several years, she kept in touch with Weinstein, showering him with compliments over email but trying to avoid nighttime meetings alone with him. Still, she said, she had a handful of consensual encounters with Weinstein after she and her actor boyfriend broke up.
'I remember I was devastated after my relationship ended. And sometimes you just want to feel wanted. And I knew that I could be used by someone,' she said.
_____

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


New York Post
21 minutes ago
- New York Post
Russia launches biggest drone attack on Ukraine since start of war — with almost 500 individual strikes
Russia has launched its biggest drone attack on Ukraine since the start of the war with almost 500 individual strikes, a day after US officials warned that such a retaliation from Moscow was likely. A total of 479 drones and 20 missiles were launched at Ukraine by Russian forces overnight, the Ukrainian air force said in a statement on Monday. All but 19 of the drones and one of the missiles were successfully downed by Ukrainian units, the air force's statement continued. 3 In this video grab taken from a handout footage released by the Russian Defence Ministry on June 9, 2025, Russian prisoners of war (POWs) react sitting in a bus following an exchange at an undisclosed location in Belarus. Russian Defence Ministry/AFP via Getty Images 3 Ukraine launched 'Operation Spiderweb' on Sunday, June 1, 2025, targeting Belaya Air Base in Russia's Irkutsk region in Siberia, approximately 3,000 miles from Ukraine. Ministry of Defense of Ukraine/UPI/Shutterstock Damage was caused to a military airfield in the city of Dubno, just 40 miles from Ukraine's western border with Poland, which was the main Russian target, air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat told Reuters. Polish and other allied aircraft were activated early on Monday to ensure the safety of the NATO member's airspace, Poland's armed forces said in a statement. 3 A resident stands at the site of the Russian air strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine June 9, 2025. REUTERS The record attacks were in response to Kyiv's devastating strikes on Russian bases earlier this month, Russia's Defense Ministry said on Monday. 'All designated targets' were hit, a statement from the ministry claimed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
NEWS OF THE WEEK: Sean 'Diddy' Combs accuser sues Harvey Weinstein for sexual assault
Crystal McKinney, a former model, accused the disgraced movie mogul of sexually assaulting her and a friend at a hotel in New York City in 2003. The lawsuit against Weinstein was first filed anonymously on 28 February. It claimed that a modelling company executive set up a meeting for McKinney to "discuss a potential business opportunity" with Weinstein one evening on the pretence that meeting Weinstein would allow McKinney to "make it big". In her lawsuit, she alleged that the executive told her, "Don't f**k him until he puts you in a movie'.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
NEWS OF THE WEEK: Sean 'Diddy' Combs accuser sues Harvey Weinstein for sexual assault
Crystal McKinney, a former model, accused the disgraced movie mogul of sexually assaulting her and a friend at a hotel in New York City in 2003. The lawsuit against Weinstein was first filed anonymously on 28 February. It claimed that a modelling company executive set up a meeting for McKinney to "discuss a potential business opportunity" with Weinstein one evening on the pretence that meeting Weinstein would allow McKinney to "make it big". In her lawsuit, she alleged that the executive told her, "Don't f**k him until he puts you in a movie'.