New lawsuit against Weinstein

Former media mogul has been accused of assaulting a teenager

Harvey Weinstein was accused in a civil court filing Wednesday of forcing a 16year-old Polish model to touch his penis, subjecting her to years of harassment and emotional abuse and blocking her from a successful acting career as payback for refusing his advances.

The accuser, identified as Jane Doe, alleges that Weinstein assaulted her at his New York City apartment in 2002, just days after they’d met at an event involving her modelling agency. Doe alleges the movie mogul promised to take her to lunch to discuss her career, but instead took her to his empty SoHo apartment and “aggressively and threateningly” demanded sex.

Weinstein instructed Doe to take off her clothes and intimated that she’d never work as an actress unless she gave in to his demands, according to the filing, the latest revelation in a lawsuit alleging Weinstein’s movie studio board enabled his behaviour.

“Terrified and struggling to hold back tears, Jane Doe said she would not and resisted his demands,” the filing states. “Jane Doe was a virgin and had no intention or understanding when she agreed to a business lunch that she would be put in this alarming position.”

Weinstein’s lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, called the allegations “preposterous.” Weinstein denies all allegations of rape.

“Eventually, just as others have been exposed to be liars, this uncorroborated allegation that is almost 20 years old will be shown to be patently false,” Brafman said.

A lawyer representing the movie studio, the Weinstein Company, declined to comment. Dozens of women have accused Weinstein of wrongdoing. Articles published a year ago in the New York Times and the New Yorker detailing his alleged behaviour helped spark the #MeToo movement.

Jane Doe’s allegations were contained in a lawsuit involving 10 named plaintiffs, including a woman who released a video in September that shows Weinstein boldly propositioning her during a 2011 business meeting hours before she says he raped her in a hotel room.

Soon after the alleged assault, Weinstein started calling and texting Jane Doe every two weeks, the court filing said. Each timehe made clear that he was the only person who could help her become an actress.