Harvey Weinstein Sexual Assault Cases
Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein was accused of sexual assault by over 80 women, sparking the #MeToo movement. He was convicted of rape in New York in 2020 and again in Los Angeles in 2022, though the New York conviction was overturned on appeal in 2024.
Case overview
Harvey Weinstein, the co-founder of Miramax Films and The Weinstein Company, was one of the most powerful producers in Hollywood for decades before his career and reputation were destroyed by an avalanche of sexual assault and harassment allegations that became public in October 2017. The revelations about Weinstein's conduct ignited the #MeToo movement, a global reckoning with sexual misconduct across industries that fundamentally changed conversations about power, consent, and accountability.
[On October 5, 2017, The New York Times published a groundbreaking investigation by reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey detailing decades of sexual harassment allegations against Weinstein](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/05/us/harvey-weinstein-harassment-allegations.html), including accounts from actresses Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan and former employees. The article revealed a pattern of behavior stretching back to the 1990s, in which Weinstein allegedly used his power to coerce young women into sexual encounters, then silenced them through non-disclosure agreements and financial settlements. Days later, Ronan Farrow published a complementary investigation in The New Yorker that included allegations of rape from multiple women.
The initial reports triggered a cascade of allegations. Over 80 women eventually came forward with accusations against Weinstein ranging from unwanted sexual advances to rape. Among the accusers were prominent actresses including Lupita Nyong'o, Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, and Salma Hayek. [Weinstein was fired from The Weinstein Company, expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and became a pariah in the entertainment industry](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2017/10/10/harvey-weinsteins-accusers/).
[On May 25, 2018, Weinstein surrendered to the New York Police Department and was charged with rape and other sex crimes involving two women](https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/25/us/harvey-weinstein-nypd/index.html). His New York trial began in January 2020 in Manhattan.
[On February 24, 2020, the New York jury convicted Weinstein of criminal sexual assault in the first degree and rape in the third degree. He was sentenced to 23 years in prison](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51634628). In a separate prosecution in Los Angeles in late 2022, [a jury convicted him of rape and additional sexual assault charges, for which he received an additional 16-year sentence](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/dec/19/harvey-weinstein-los-angeles-trial-verdict).
[In April 2024, the New York Court of Appeals overturned Weinstein's New York conviction in a 4-3 decision, ruling that the trial judge had improperly allowed testimony from women whose allegations were not part of the criminal charges](https://www.npr.org/2024/04/25/1246946987/harvey-weinstein-conviction-overturned-new-york). Manhattan prosecutors announced they would retry the case. Despite the New York reversal, Weinstein remains imprisoned on the Los Angeles conviction.
Harvey Weinstein was indicted in New York on May 30, 2018, on charges including rape in the first and third degree and criminal sexual assault. His trial in Manhattan Supreme Court began January 6, 2020. [On February 24, 2020, the jury convicted him of criminal sexual assault in the first degree and rape in the third degree, acquitting him on the most serious predatory sexual assault charges. He was sentenced to 23 years by Justice James Burke on March 11, 2020](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51634628). In Los Angeles, Weinstein was charged with multiple counts of rape and sexual assault. [A jury convicted him in December 2022 of rape and two other counts; he was sentenced to 16 years consecutively](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/dec/19/harvey-weinstein-los-angeles-trial-verdict). [On April 25, 2024, the New York Court of Appeals overturned the New York conviction in a 4-3 ruling, finding that the trial court erred by admitting testimony from uncharged accusers](https://www.npr.org/2024/04/25/1246946987/harvey-weinstein-conviction-overturned-new-york). The Manhattan District Attorney's office announced plans for a retrial. Weinstein remains incarcerated on the California conviction. He was also the subject of a civil settlement of approximately million with accusers through The Weinstein Company's bankruptcy proceedings.
April 25, 2024
New York Conviction Overturned on Appeal
The New York Court of Appeals overturns Weinstein's 2020 conviction in a 4-3 ruling, finding that the trial judge improperly allowed testimony from women who were not part of the criminal charges. A retrial is ordered.
Source →December 19, 2022
Convicted in Los Angeles of Rape
A Los Angeles jury convicts Weinstein of rape and two other sexual assault charges. He is later sentenced to 16 years in prison, to run consecutively with his New York sentence.
Source →February 24, 2020
Convicted in New York of Rape and Sexual Assault
A Manhattan jury convicts Weinstein of criminal sexual assault in the first degree and rape in the third degree. He is sentenced to 23 years in prison on March 11, 2020.
Source →May 25, 2018
Weinstein Surrenders to NYPD
Harvey Weinstein turns himself in to the NYPD's First Precinct in Manhattan and is charged with rape and criminal sexual assault involving two women. He is released on $1 million bail with an ankle monitor.
Source →October 10, 2017
Ronan Farrow Publishes Additional Allegations in The New Yorker
Ronan Farrow publishes an investigation in The New Yorker with allegations from 13 women, including three who accused Weinstein of rape. The combined reporting triggers the global #MeToo movement.
Source →October 5, 2017
New York Times Publishes Weinstein Investigation
Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey publish a bombshell investigation in The New York Times revealing decades of sexual harassment allegations against Harvey Weinstein, including settlements paid to at least eight women.
Source →Relationship data not yet mapped — nodes positioned by force simulation.
Harvey Weinstein
Former Hollywood producer and co-founder of Miramax Films. Convicted of sexual assault in both New York (2020, overturned 2024) and Los Angeles (2022). His downfall ignited the global #MeToo movement.
Miriam Haley
Former production assistant who testified that Weinstein forcibly performed oral sex on her in 2006. Her testimony was central to Weinstein's New York conviction.
Jessica Mann
Aspiring actress who testified that Weinstein raped her in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013. Her testimony contributed to the New York rape conviction.