KICK IN THE VANCE
GOV SEEKS TO PROBE WHY DA LET HARVEY OFF
MANHATTAN District Attorney Cy Vance Jr. could be timing out on his probe into Harvey Weinstein.
Gov. Cuomo on Monday took the unusual step of calling on the state’s attorney general to look into Vance’s much-criticized handling of the Weinstein case.
The stunning request for the state’s top prosecutor to investigate Manhattan’s top prosecutor came after actresses such as Jessica Chastain, Reese Witherspoon, Alyssa Milano and Julianne Moore endorsed a letter to Cuomo asking him “to launch an independent investigation” of Vance.
The letter, written by the advocacy group Time’s Up, demanded an inquiry into Vance’s decision to not bring charges against Weinstein in 2015 for groping Italian model Ambra Battilana.
“There will only be real consequences for abusive behavior when our public officials, sworn to uphold the law, care as much about the rights of the victim as concerns for the accused,” read the letter published on New York magazine’s “The Cut” Sunday night.
Cuomo agreed and sicced Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Vance.
“It is of great concern that sexual assault cases have not been pursued with full vigor by our criminal justice system,” Cuomo said in a statement Monday night. “Specifically, there are questions about the handling of the 2015 sexual assault case of Ms. Ambra Battilana against Harvey Weinstein.”
The governor did acknowledge the DA is pursuing a second sexual assault case against the producer. Weinstein is the subject of more than 100 allegations of sex abuse and harassment.
“I have directed the attorney general to begin a review of the 2015 case in a way that does not interfere with the current investigation and, at the conclusion of the Manhattan district attorney’s current investigation, to review the entire matter and report to me on its findings,” Cuomo said. “Based on these findings we will decide what further actions may be necessary.” Schneiderman, who is himself an elected official, reminded the governor he already has a civil case going against the disgraced Hollywood mogul. “We are deeply familiar with Weinstein’s years of egregious sexual abuse, and recently filed a civil rights lawsuit against him alleging severe and persistent abuse of employees at the Weinstein Co. We are committed to pursuing a full, fair and independent review of the matter,” the AG said in a statement. Vance spokesman Danny Frost defended the office’s work on sex crimes cases. “We are confident that any review will confirm that our office has pursued its investigation without fear or favor, based on the merits alone,” he said.