TSR Updatez: Harvey Weinstein, the defamed film mogul whose alleged pattern of sexual abuse helped fuel the #MeToo movement, has been charged in Los Angeles with sexually assaulting two women, according to the Los Angeles District Attorney.
Weinstein is being charged in Los Angeles with raping one woman and sexually assaulting another in separate incidents on two consecutive days in February 2013, the district attorney’s office said in a statement.
These new charges are not to be confused with his criminal trial in New York, where he has been charged with felony sexual assault, NBC News reports. Jury selection for that case begins Tuesday.
“We believe the evidence will show that the defendant used his power and influence to gain access to his victims and then commit violent crimes against them,” District Attorney Jackie Lacey said, adding that prosecutors are recommending that Weinstein’s bail be set at $5 million.
If convicted as charged, Weinstein is looking at a potential 28 years in state prison. Weinstein has vehemently denied all accusations of nonconsensual sexual activity.
The news of the charges came just hours after Rose McGowan and other women who have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct rallied near a New York City courthouse as he arrived for the first day of his criminal trial.
Weinstein faces charges that he raped a woman in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013 and performed a forcible sex act on another woman back in 2006.
We’ll keep you posted on the outcome of his trial and any updates in his Los Angeles case.
