Harvey Weinstein has been found guilty of rape at a Los Angeles trial after a jury deliberated for nine days before convicting him.
The former movie producer’s second criminal trial reached a conclusion on Monday as the jury of nine men and three women announced its verdict.
Weinstein, 70, faced two counts of forcible rape and five counts of sexual assault in Los Angeles, involving four women, going back from 2005 to 2013. He had pleaded not guilty.
He was found guilty of rape, forced oral copulation and a sexual misconduct charge involving a woman referred to in court as Jane Doe 1.
The jury was hung on several counts, notably charges involving Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the wife of California Governor Gavin Newsom. The jury reported it was unable to reach verdicts in her allegations and the allegations of another woman. A mistrial was declared on those counts.
Ms Newsom, a documentary filmmaker, told the court she had been raped by Weinstein in a hotel room in 2005.
“Harvey Weinstein will never be able to rape another woman,” Ms Siebel Newsom said in a statement.
“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 intimidate, demean, and ridicule us survivors.
“This trial 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.”
Gov. Newsom said in his own statement that he is “so incredibly proud of my wife and all the brave women who came forward to share their truth and uplift countless survivors who cannot.”
“Their strength, courage and conviction is a powerful example and inspiration to all of us,” Mr Newsom added. “We must keep fighting to ensure that survivors are supported and that their voices are heard.”
Weinstein was also acquitted of a sexual battery allegation made by another woman.
The Los Angeles case followed Weinstein’s first criminal trial, which happened in New York in 2020. In February of that year, he was convicted of third-degree rape and a criminal sex act, and sentenced to 23 years in prison.
Weinstein, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by more than 100 women since 2017, was extradited to California for the new proceedings.
He will be sentenced in Los Angeles next year and must complete his New York sentence before being transferred back to California.
Weinstein’s LA trial opened on 24 October and saw testimony from several women who alleged they were assaulted by him when he was a powerful Hollywood producer. Prosecutors argued that Weinstein used his status to lure and intimidate women he then attacked. The defence contended that Weinstein’s acts were part of a pattern of “transactional” behaviour in the movie industry.
In August, New York’s highest court allowed Weinstein’s appeal in the state to go forward. It’s expected to continue at a later date.
Additional reporting by The Associated Press
