The West Coast panel, consisting of nine men and three ladies, has begun deliberations in the rape case against the producer. After Friday’s lunch break, the jury will begin formal discussions behind closed doors.
Weinstein was charged with two counts each of rape and five of sexual assault in L.A. County incidents between 2004 and 2013. He faces a maximum sentence of 60 years in prison plus five additional years if convicted. After a grueling 2017 expose by the New York Times and dozens of accusations over more than 40 years, Weinstein, a 70-year-old Pulp Fiction Producer was found guilty. He was sentenced to 23 years imprisonment by a Manhattan jury on March 2020 for multiple sexual crimes. The Empire State is currently appealing the decision.
Weinstein, aged 70, is facing seven counts of sexual assault involving four women. He was charged with three counts each of forcible and oral rape, two counts each of sexual battery by restraint and one count of sexual penetration using a foreign object. Weinstein pleaded not guilty.
In his rebuttal of the closing argument made by the defense, Deputy District Attorney Paul Thompson stated that “you have irrefutable and overwhelming evidence of the character of this man and what he did it to these women.” Thompson asked jurors to convict Weinstein of the two counts of rape and five counts for sexual assault he is charged with.
Jennifer Siebel Newsom is a documentary filmmaker and married to California Governor Gavin Newsom. She was one of the witnesses.
The mistrial result in the Danny Masterson case involving rape proved that predictions about how long it will take for a jury to reach a verdict are a fool’s errand. If the West Coast case does not go his way, you can expect a swift appeal.
