Disgraced producer, rapist, and soon to be USDA certified “fresh meat” in federal prison, Harvey Weinstein was sentenced in New York City on Wednesday to 23 years in prison for third-degree rape and a criminal sex act – even as he pathetically maintained that he simply had consensual “extramarital affairs” with the victims.
As reported by Fox News, Weinstein was convicted on two counts last month: criminal sex act for the 2006 assault of a production assistant and rape in the third degree for the 2013 attack on another woman. On the criminal sex act count, he faced a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 25 years, while the third-degree rape count carried a maximum penalty of four years in prison.
Both victims, Miriam Haleyi and Jessica Mann, read impact statements ahead of the sentencing. The four other women who testified against him, including “Sopranos” actress Annabella Sciorra, sat silently in the courtroom and observed the sentencing.
In comments ahead of sentencing, Weinstein expressed little remorse, defended his relationships with the women, said he was “confused,” bragged about the charity money he raised after 9/11 and Superstorm Sandy, compared himself to Dalton Trumbo, whined that his children won’t speak to him, and… Oh, hell! Here are selected highlights, courtesy of CNN:
First of all, to all the women who testified, we may have different truths, but I have great remorse for all of you. I have great remorse for all the men and women going through this crisis right now in our country.You know, the movement started basically with me, and I think what happened, you know, I was the first example, and now there are thousands of men who are being accused and a regeneration of things that I think none of us understood.…That five years with Jessica and the years that I knew Mimi were always filled with, don’t go on the plane Harv, I want to have dinner with you first from Mimi. Or, Harv, whatever, let’s get,you know, can you look at this idea I have for a television series. Or Harv, I’m in Cannes, can I go to the premier. Or Jessica, can I get into the Soho Club, which is a very exclusive, tough place to get into. But she needed it for herself. I got her a job at the Peninsula Hotel which she excelled at for awhile.…You know, I just — dealing with the thousands of men and women who are losing due process, I’m worried about this country in a sense too. I’m worried there is a repeat of the blacklist there was in the 1950’s when lots of men like myself, Dalton Trumbo, one of the great examples, did not work, went to jail because people thought they were communists.
…
I’m not going to also run away from what the District Attorney said about some of the things I did say. I had a fight with my brother, yes, people said I said bad things to people, but there are so many people, thousands of people who would say great things about me.
…
The year I left AmFar, we raised $30 million dollars and $170 million dollars overall. I worked too hard. As a result of working too hard, I felt too much pressure on myself. I really feel the remorse of this situation, I feel it deeply in my heart. I feel emotional, I feel like to go and talk to you guys, you know, just really, really caring and really trying and really trying to be a better person. Thank you, your Honor, for the time.
Inescapable conclusion: Harvey Weinstein is a delusional narcissist and will rightfully rot in prison for the rest of his life.
Hey, remember when Michele Obama, Hillary Clinton, and half of Hollywood were praising Weinstein’s character and service to humanity and art? Hammer and Nigel do, and they have all the best highlights from Weinstein’s advocates in today’s edition of “Legal Stuff.”
https://omny.fm/shows/hammer-and-nigel-show/legal-stuff-2
