New York Daily News

Judge won’t toss charges against Harv

- BY MOLLY CRANE-NEWMAN

A Manhattan judge denied Harvey Weinstein’s last-ditch attempt to have his criminal case dismissed and will allow actress Annabella Sciorra to testify at his upcoming trial, according to the latest court documents.

In a decision filed late Tuesday, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice James Burke denied a series of motions filed by the disgraced movie mogul’s lawyers — some of which sought to have charges of rape and predatory sex assault against Weinstein dropped, the records show.

The fallen film producer’s lawyers sought to exclude testimony from “The Sopranos” star Sciorra, who came forward amid the #MeToo scandal that toppled Weinstein to claim that he raped her 26 years ago.

Weinstein’s lawyers also tried to get charges tossed relating to production assistant Mimi Haley’s claim that Weinstein performed forcible oral sex on her in 2006. Burke denied that motion as well.

A request from the defense seeking records of ex-NYPD lead investigat­or Nicholas DiGaudio and informatio­n relating to four of his accusers was also denied. Burke cited the defense’s failure to prove “why such records are relevant.”

Detective DiGaudio became the subject of controvers­y when it was revealed he may have passed sensitive informatio­n about accusation­s against Weinstein’s case to lead prosecutor Joan Illuzzi before the grand jury heard evidence.

In a minor win for the defense, the judge will allow Weinstein’s lawyers to call an expert witness to testify on human memory — though they will be forbidden from testifying about theories and methods not “generally accepted in the scientific community,” the decision states.

Weinstein, 67, has been indicted three times since his May 25, 2018, arrest and faces a total of five counts in his Manhattan case — including rape and predatory sex assault.

More than 90 women around the world have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct, though he has claimed all of the alleged encounters were consensual.

Weinstein faces a minimum of 10 years behind bars on predatory sex assault, the top count.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States