Weinstein’s defense sends defiant signal after rape charges

NEW YORK — For years, Harvey Weinstein was an influential man accustomed to strolling paparazzi-lined red carpets, schmoozing with beautiful people as photographers called out his name.

On Friday, the disgraced movie mogul drew a similarly rowdy crowd amid a darker spotlight.

As Weinstein stepped out of a dark sport utility vehicle in front of the New York Police Department’s 1st Precinct station in downtown Manhattan, hordes of photographers and television camera operators jostled for shots behind barriers on either side of him. Reporters shouted questions. He ignored them.

It was a monumental day for the #MeToo movement, which was ignited after dozens of women accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct. On Friday, the film producer turned himself in to the NYPD, and prosecutors filed criminal charges against him, including rape.

As he walked into the police precinct, he carried a book that, some say, signaled defiance: “Elia Kazan” by Richard Schickel, a biography of the legendary director and former member of the Communist Party who was infamous for naming names of other party members — including those of his friends — amid a wave of U.S. anticommunist hysteria.

In an era in which women in the film industry are speaking out about sexual harassment and demanding gender parity, Weinstein’s attorney invoked an old Hollywood stereotype in the producer’s defense.

“Mr. Weinstein did not invent the casting couch in Hollywood,” Benjamin Brafman said, referring to the practice of a person in power demanding sex in exchange for career advancement. “And to the extent that there is bad behavior in that industry, that is not what this is about. Bad behavior is not on trial in this case. It’s only if you intentionally committed a criminal act, and Mr. Weinstein vigorously denies that.”

It’s the first prominent prosecution of a Hollywood figure since a wave of accusations of sexual harassment and assault rocked the industry in the wake of New York Times and New Yorker stories detailing Weinstein’s alleged behavior. Some hope the #MeToo movement will usher in a new era in the way the industry and the rest of society treat women and hold men accountable for their bad acts.

But Weinstein’s defense, at least as it was outlined Friday, appears to draw a distinction between objectionable behavior and criminal behavior. Some legal experts said it suggests an ugly legal battle ahead.

Steve Cooley, a former Los Angeles County district attorney, said prosecutors are likely to try to show that Weinstein has a long history of sexual assault, a tactic employed by authorities in the Bill Cosby case. Weinstein’s defense, on the other hand, will probably “raise ever-possible defense: statute of limitations, discredit the victims and their motivations.”

Weinstein was charged with rape in the first and third degree involving a woman in 2013, and with committing a criminal sexual act in the first degree with another woman in 2004, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. said in a statement. Authorities have withheld the victims’ names, although one is a woman who went public with allegations against Weinstein in a magazine article last year.

On Friday morning, Weinstein, wearing a light blue sweater beneath a dark blazer, was escorted out of the NYPD precinct by two police investigators who held his arms back. He smiled.

His hands were cuffed behind his back as he was walked through a courtroom. He did not speak during a brief appearance.

The judge set his bond at $10 million and restricted his movements to New York and Connecticut. Weinstein surrendered his passport, and his attorney handed over a $1 million cashier’s check for the bail. Weinstein consented to 24-hour-a-day GPS monitoring and a temporary restraining order requested by one accuser.

Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi said in court that Weinstein “used his position and power” to sexually exploit women.

Speaking to reporters after the court appearance, Brafman said Weinstein will enter a plea of not guilty and continues to “vehemently deny” any criminal behavior. Weinstein, he said, maintains that any sexual acts were consensual and that the charges are “constitutionally flawed.”

Brafman said that if the women are cross-examined before a jury, “the charges will not be believed by 12 people, assuming we will get 12 fair people who are not consumed by the movement that seems to have overtaken this case.”

The attorney said he will be filing a motion to dismiss the charges as being legally flawed and not supported by credible evidence.

The charges are the first to result from seven months of investigations in New York, California and London.