Weinstein’s rape and sexual assault retrial involves accusations from three women, including one who wasn’t part of the original trial.
Opening statements are set for Wednesday in New York for disgraced former movie mogul Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial, this time with a majority-female jury deciding the landmark #MeToo case.
Prosecutors and Weinstein’s lawyers finished choosing a sixth and final alternate on Tuesday after a selection process yielded a seven-woman, five-man jury and five alternate jurors on Monday. Alternates step in if a member of the main panel can’t see the trial through.
Weinstein was convicted at his first trial in 2020 by a jury of five women and seven men. The verdict marked a pivotal moment for the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct, fuelled by a series of allegations against the producer of Oscar winners including Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love.
In a blow to #MeToo activists, New York’s highest court last year overturned the conviction and 23-year prison sentence after it found that the original trial judge allowed women whose accusations were not part of the charges Weinstein faced to give evidence in court.
Weinstein’s rape and sexual assault retrial involves accusations from three women: an aspiring actor who said he raped her in 2013 and two women who made separate allegations of forced oral sex in 2006. One of the two wasn’t part of the original trial.
In the meantime, Weinstein is also facing a separate 2022 rape conviction in Los Angeles.
Weinstein, 73, has pleaded not guilty and denies raping or sexually assaulting anyone. He has insisted that all sexual encounters he was involved in were consensual.
The 12 members of the main jury for the New York retrial include a physics researcher, a photographer, a dietitian, a therapist, an investment bank software engineer and a fire safety director. Others have experience in real estate, TV commercials, debt collection, social work and other fields.
Those chosen were questioned about their backgrounds, life experiences and various other points that could relate to their ability to be fair and impartial in the highly publicised case.
Prosecutor Shannon Lucey sought assurances that prospective jurors could put aside any position or feelings they had about #MeToo.
Bombshell allegations against Weinstein erupted in 2017 and led to a flood of allegations against other powerful men as women fought back against sexual violence in what became known as the #MeToo movement.
The Hollywood mogul underwent emergency heart surgery after being rushed from prison to a hospital in New York in September. He was later diagnosed with bone marrow cancer and received treatment in prison for chronic myeloid leukaemia.