Harvey Weinstein gets 16 years in prison in Los Angeles rape case
- The sentence comes on top of the more than 20 years the 70-year-old ex-movie mogul has left to serve for a similar 2020 conviction in New York
- A jury had previously convicted Weinstein of the 2013 rape and sexual assault of an Italian actress and model
A Los Angeles judge on Thursday sentenced Harvey Weinstein to 16 years in prison after a jury convicted him of the 2013 rape and sexual assault of an Italian actress and model.
The sentence comes on top of the more than 20 years the 70-year-old Weinstein has left to serve for a similar 2020 conviction in New York, furthering the fall of the one-time movie magnate who became a #MeToo magnet.
Weinstein directly appealed to Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench, saying: “I maintain that I’m innocent. I never raped or sexually assaulted Jane Doe 1.” The woman who Weinstein was convicted of raping sobbed in the courtroom as he spoke.
Moments earlier she had told the judge about the pain she felt after being attacked by Weinstein.
“Before that night I was a very happy and confident woman. I valued myself and the relationship I had with God,” the woman, who was identified in court only as Jane Doe 1, said. “I was excited about my future. Everything changed after the defendant brutally assaulted me. There is no prison sentence long enough to undo the damage.”
