Weinstein to make 1st court appearance since conviction overturned; Chicago atty. predicted decision
Even if Weinstein escapes New York case altogether, he's not off the hook
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Disgraced movie producer Harvey Weinstein will soon be back in the same Manhattan courthouse where he was tried and convicted four years ago. One of his Chicago attorneys, Damon Cheronis, told the ABC7 Chicago I-Team that, during the trial, he sensed an appellate court might eventually side with his client.
"At one point during the trial, I literally said to the trial court judge, 'what is happening here?' I mean, I don't normally do that, but the amount of evidence that was being let in, and the rulings that were being made," Cheronis said.
He co-defended Weinstein during his 2020 trial. The former movie mogul was found guilty of rape and criminal sexual assault. When the I-Team interviewed Cheronis after the conviction, he made it very clear he didn't think his client received a fair trial.
Weinstein appealed.
"The New York Supreme Court reversed Harvey Weinstein's conviction in Manhattan, basically saying that the court made some egregious errors. Those are the words used by the Supreme Court, by allowing in other acts, evidence. There were three women who are allowed to testify who were not charged in the case, and he also allowed the government to cross-examine Mr. Weinstein on a bunch of unrelated conduct. And putting those two things together, the Supreme Court held that Harvey was denied his right to a fair trial, and reversed it," Cheronis told the I-Team.
SEE MORE: New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction
Weinstein was serving his sentence in an upstate New York prison, but was transferred Friday to the notorious Riker's Island to await a possible new trial. He suffers from an abundance of health issues, and was taken to a prison hospital that night. His attorneys say he is expected to be in court Wednesday afternoon.
"New York said that they would be willing to try it, but a lot of it's going to depend on whether or not those individuals want to come forward and testify again. And I don't know; I can't get into their heads. I don't know where they are now in their lives or whether they want to go through that again," Cheronis said. "But I don't think it is necessarily 100% that he's going to be retried again in New York. I wouldn't bet either way on it."
Even if Weinstein escapes the New York case altogether, he's not off the hook. The one-time wonderman of Hollywood also has a conviction in California, where he was sentenced to 16 years in prison for sex crimes there. He is appealing that case, as well.
