Harvey Weinstein extradited to California to face second rape trial

Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein was extradited from New York to Los Angeles on Tuesday to face trial on rape and sexual assault charges.

Weinstein was convicted in New York in February 2020 for sexual assault and rape and was sentenced to 23 years in prison.

In Los Angeles, he is wanted for trial on 11 charges of attacking five women from 2004 to 2013.

The Los Angeles charges include rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual battery by restraint, and sexual penetration by use of force. If convicted, Weinstein could spend the rest of his life in prison.

Los Angeles police said Weinstein had arrived in Los Angeles and “after being medically cleared for booking, he will be booked into custody with LA County Sheriffs.”

No date was given for his first appearance in court.

Weinstein, 69, is appealing his New York conviction and sentence, and has denied having nonconsensual sex with anyone.

He had been fighting extradition on medical grounds, citing diabetes and cardiac, back and eyesight problems.

“We will be fighting so that Harvey can receive his needed medical care and of course, so that he can be treated fairly. Due process, presumption of innocence and a fair trial are all still his right,” his spokesperson Juda Engelmayer said in a statement on Tuesday.

Weinstein was one of the most powerful movie and TV producers in Hollywood before allegations by more than 80 women of sexual misconduct in 2017 led to criminal charges and fuelled the wider #MeToo movement.

He cofounded the Miramax film studio, whose hit movies included Shakespeare in Love and Pulp Fiction. His own eponymous film studio filed for bankruptcy in March 2018. 

Reuters