Harvey Weinstein’s defense team is asking for a new West Coast trial for the incarcerated producer. Defense attorneys Wekman Jackson & Quinn, who represent the Oscar winner, are taking the risky move to question the credibility of Jane Doe #1 and the LA County District Attorney’s office.
“By her own admission to the prosecutors, Jane Doe 1 lied when she testified under oath that the extent of her relationship with Mr. Vicedomini was only that of friends and coworkers,” the motion filed today in LA Superior Court says of the Weinstein accuser and the Italian TV host and festival organizer.
Since the “jury was left with a false impression” allegedly of Jane Doe #1’s claims, the motion also criticizes LA deputy DAs Marlene Martinez and Paul Thompson for creating “false versions” of the events.
According to Jane Doe #1, Weinstein raped her in February 2013 in a Beverly Hills hotel room while the L.A. Italia Film Festival took place.
On December 19, after almost two months on trial, Weinstein was found guilty by a panel of eight men and four women on all counts with Jane Doe #1. However, he was found not guilty of sexual battery on Jane Doe #2. The charges were hung for Jane Doe #3 and Jane Doe #4, a.k.a. California First Partner Jennifer Sibel Newsom. Because the jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict, Judge Lisa Lench declared a mistrial.
Since there was a mixed verdict last month, Weinstein’s defense team wants their new trial considered by LA Superior Court Judge on February 23. The noteworthy date is when Weinstein’s sentencing is to take place. He is looking at a maximum of 18 years in prison.
The LA DA’s office has not made any comment on the motion.
However, that won’t stop Weinstein’s team from speaking up. “The Motion speaks for itself and is demonstrative of just how some, even in the halls of justice, are inspired by social and political outcry rather than facts,” spokesman Juda Engelmayer told Deadline Tuesday. “Witnesses lied about crucial evidence that would have exonerated Mr. Weinstein, and it was somehow deemed unnecessary for the jury to hear or know those facts.”
The Pulp Fiction producer faced multiple rape charges in the summer of 2021 and is serving 23 years for his 2020 NYC conviction. According to his team, the East Coast case is on appeal on grounds that the Manhattan trial was “unfair, the allegations were outside of statute of limitations” and should be dismissed and freed.
The 70-year-old Weinstein is being held in the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in DTLA.
Leave a Comment