It has happened, Harvey Weinstein is being brought face to face with his crimes and will go to court, an essential victory for the #MeToo movement!
Harvey Weinstein will finally meet charges, as he emerged from a police station in handcuffs Fri., May 25. The once Hollywood powerhouse is being charged with one count of rape and one count of a criminal sex act. The first major figure in the movie industry which unveiled the long unpunished sexual crimes of the powerful within Hollywood seems to be just the tip of the iceberg the #MeToo movement has uncovered.
Manhattan Assistant Attorney Joan Illuzzi-Orbon stated, in front of Weinstein, "This defendant used his position, money and power to lure young women into situations where he was able to violate them sexually."
The charges were drawn from two of over dozens of cases in which Harvey Weinstein sexually violated the victims, a few of whom are notable celebrities, amidst the slew of allegations that surround him. The two cases involve a woman who has not been revealed publically and the other was a former actress who was one of the first to accuse Weinstein. He has denied all the accusations.
Weinstein's Attorney, Benjamin Brafman, is still looking for dismissal of the charges.
His argument is that the accusations and accusers did not report the crimes to police after they occurred. Brafman suggested potential jurors would not believe the accusers.
Brafman said, "Assuming we get 12 fair people who are not consumed by the movement that seems to have overtaken this case."
The #MeToo movement while taken up vigorously by many in the industry and the public has uncovered a repeated story within Hollywood of the powerless being taken advantage of by the powerful.
Brafman in response to the periphery allegations of Weinstein's inappropriate behavior said that he was only focused on the crimes, saying, "Mr. Weinstein did not invent the casting couch in Hollywood."
With $1 million dollars bail Weinstein was let go but will undergo electronic monitoring and will not be able to leave New York and Connecticut.
"You sorry, Harvey?" was asked numerously by the press as he was taken to the lower Manhattan courthouse.
He was also asked, "what can you say?" to which his response was a soft-spoken "no."
The behavior is one of shock that reality has caught up with him, since after all why would so many accuse him of the crimes if not at least a few were true? And committing one act of rape is enough.
As he walked into the police station he was seen carrying books about Rodgers and Hammerstein the Broadway songwriting team and the other was about Elia Kazan the famed film director.
25 years in prison is just the amount he could get for the worst charges. Weinstein could easily die in prison well before his sentence is up since he is 66.
The charge which is strongest is that he confined a woman in a hotel room and raped her while in Manhatten, the court complaint states.
The other charge, the criminal sex act, is involved with an incident in 2004 in which Lucia Evans, the former aspiring actress, was coerced into giving Weinstein oral sex, which was just supposed to be a meeting n his office. One can say this is also rape. Lucia has stated this to The New Yorker.
Carrie Goldberg, Evans Lawyer, stated to the Associated Press, "We are relieved and grateful that justice is coming, but we also mourn the cases where it didn't."
Upwards of 75 women have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct, involving cases in California and London of assault which is being investigated.
Brafman has stated also that Weinstein was a "principal target" of the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan which is also investigating him. On top of this NYPD are working on a case which involves Paz de la Huerta, known for her part in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire, in which she was raped twice in 2010 by Weinstein. She had informed the police in fall 2017.
Other public accusers are Rose McGowan, who Weinstein apparently raped in Utah in 1997, Annabella Sciorra from The Sopranoes, was allegedly raped in her New York apartment in 1992. Another is a Norwegian actress, Natassia Malthe, who Weinstein attacked in a London Hotel room she rented in 2008.
Before he was brought down, Weinstein was one of the most powerful in Hollywood, including having companies he co-founded such as Miramax and the Weinstein Co. and has made classics happen such as Pulp Fiction, Shakespeare in Love and The King's Speech. In fact, he has been responsible for numerous movies. Although with these incredible accomplishments, always in the background was rumors of Weinstein's aggressive sexual appetites. Maybe monstrous is a better descriptive word.
To boot, the police had the model confront Weinstein with a wire but the Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. did not bring charges because there was not enough evidence at the time.
This time District Attorney Vance, a Democrat, was under public pressure to prosecute Weinstein stated about the newest charges that they, "reflect significant progress in this active, ongoing investigation."
The allegations set against Weinstein have created public outcry which has fueled the #MeToo movement and rightfully so. It is not like hearing about men in power using that power to take advantage of others sexually is a new thing. It is ancient, and movements such as #MeToo are really part of a bigger call to action against a very large unresolved problem.
Other powerful men who have been stripped of their authority due to various levels of sexual misconduct involve Matt Lauer and Charlie Rose, Louis C.K., Al Franken, Chef Mario Batali, Steve Wynn a Casino powerhouse and, Democratic New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.
Although Friday was important because it is the seeing through of Weinstein Being brought to justice, which many including Rose McGowan have breathed a sigh of public relief, according to Associated Press.
Where there is smoke, there is most likely fire. These charges trumped up against Weinstein are to be considered very serious and due to the numerous accusations hurled against him, with fury, it most certainly happened one too many times, from rape to coercion by the positioning of power.
Afterall, how do you stand up to one of the richest and powerful within the movie industry without a movement to back you?
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