A New York grand jury had begun the process of getting justice for the women wh have alleged to have been a victim of Harvey Weinstein.
The grand jury had indicted Weinstein on charges of rape. Hopefully this trial will not be played out in the hands of the media and the women who were prey to Weinstein’s shenanigans get justice.
It’s disturbing that it took so long for the authorities to arrested him and even as this news of the indictment comes Weinstein is free on $1M bond.
EarHustle411 will post more updates as they are released to the public.
Read more as reported by NBC News:
A New York City grand jury indicted Harvey Weinstein on rape charges, the Long Island attorneys for drug crime charges said on Wednesday. Weinstein turned himself in to New York police last week and was released on bail.
“This indictment brings the defendant another step closer to accountability for the crimes of violence with which he is now charged,” Manhattan DA Cy Vance said in a statement. “Our office will try this case not in the press, but in the courtroom where it belongs. The defendant’s recent assault on the integrity of the survivors and the legal process is predictable. We are confident that when the jury hears the evidence, it will reject these attacks out of hand.”
Weinstein has been charged with rape in the first and third degrees, and criminal sexual act in the first degree. He has previously denied any nonconsensual sexual encounters.
The announcement came hours after Weinstein’s lawyers said he’d decline to testify before the grand jury because there wasn’t enough time to prepare him and “political pressure” made an indictment unavoidable.
A statement issued through a Weinstein spokesman said the 66-year-old film producer, who has denied the allegations, learned of the specific charges and the accusers’ identities only after turning himself in Friday. With a deadline set for Wednesday afternoon to testify or not, his request for more time was denied, the statement said.
“Finally, Mr. Weinstein’s attorneys noted that regardless of how compelling Mr. Weinstein’s personal testimony might be, an indictment was inevitable due to the unfair political pressure being placed on Cy Vance to secure a conviction of Mr. Weinstein,” the statement said, referring to Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr.
Vance said in a statement that the Weinstein camp’s “recent assault on the integrity of the survivors and the legal process is predictable.”
“We are confident that when the jury hears the evidence, it will reject these attacks out of hand,” Vance said.
Weinstein was charged Friday with rape and criminal sex act charges involving two women in New York, as a grand jury continued hearing evidence in the case; the panel has been at work for weeks. Defendants have the right to testify in a grand jury’s secret proceedings but often don’t, for various reasons.
Weinstein faces rape and criminal sex act charges involving two women in New York. Dozens more women have accused him of sexual misconduct ranging from harassment to assault in various locales.
He has denied all allegations of nonconsensual sex, and his lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said Tuesday that Weinstein was “confident he’s going to clear his name” in the New York prosecution.
Source: NBC News