Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced that former film producer Harvey Weinstein was convicted Monday of three counts of sexual assault against a woman.
“I want to thank the survivors in this case, who exhibited extraordinary bravery in a case that put them in the national spotlight,” District Attorney Gascón said. “Reporting sexual assault is never easy. Subjecting oneself to at times brutal cross-examination can be retraumatizing and extraordinarily painful. I stand in awe of their fearlessness. They deserve better than what the system has given them.
I also want to thank the jurors for their service during this lengthy trial and for examining all of the evidence carefully. I am of course disappointed that the jury was split on some of the counts, but hope its partial verdicts bring at least some measure of justice to the victims.
Finally, I want to thank the entire trial team. These cases are never easy and this is no exception. Our team will meet to determine whether or not we intend to retry the counts that were hung.”
Jurors deliberated for 10 days before finding Weinstein guilty of one count of forcible rape, one count of forced oral copulation and one count of sexual penetration by a foreign object.
Jurors will return to court Tuesday to consider aggravating factors that will help determine the outcome of Weinstein’s sentencing hearing. He faces a possible sentence of 24 years in prison.
The counts Weinstein was convicted of stem from the assault of a woman in February 2013.
News by Breaking911
