New Sexual Assault Charge Added Against Harvey Weinstein
New Sexual Assault Charge Added Against Harvey Weinstein
by Contributing Editor
Los Angeles County prosecutors Friday filed another sexual assault charge against disgraced former film producer Harvey Weinstein, accusing him of attacking a woman at a Beverly Hills hotel in May 2010.
Weinstein, 68, is now facing five felony counts involving alleged crimes with three women in Los Angeles County.
Meanwhile, prosecutors said they declined to file charges in alleged incidents involving two actresses who have declined to testify against Weinstein, including a woman who testified at his New York trial, in which he was convicted of sexually assaulting two women.
He was sentenced March 11 in New York to 23 years behind bars, but it remains unclear when he will be brought to the Southland in connection with the case against him here.
The latest charge — a felony count of sexual battery by restraint — alleges that the crime occurred on May 11, 2010. The alleged victim was first interviewed by law enforcement last October as a potential corroborating witness in the case and subsequently provided information that the alleged attack occurred within the 10-year statute of limitations, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Weinstein was charged Jan. 6 with one felony count each of forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by use of force and sexual battery by restraint. Those alleged crimes — involving two women — occurred a day apart in February 2013, according to the complaint.
“We are continuing to build and strengthen our case,” District Attorney Jackie Lacey said in a written statement. “As we gather corroborating evidence, we have reached out to other possible sexual assault victims. If we find new evidence of a previously unreported crime, as we did here, we will investigate and determine whether additional criminal charges should be filed.”
Los Angeles County prosecutors said they have initiated a request for the temporary custody of Weinstein from New York — the first of several steps in the extradition process.
Weinstein could face up to 29 years in state prison if convicted as charged, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles and Beverly Hills police departments and the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation.
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All credit goes to Contributing Editor
Originally published on https://mynewsla.com
