The disgraced movie producer was found guilty on three of the seven counts he faced in December.
Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 16 years in prison following his conviction in the Los Angeles rape trial that lasted five weeks.
The disgraced movie mogul's sentencing was handed down Thursday in a Los Angeles courtroom, where the 70-year-old was convicted in December. The sentencing comes two months after the jury -- comprised of eight men and four women -- needed just over two weeks to deliberate. In the end, the jury found Weinstein guilty on three of the seven counts he faced. He was found guilty on the charges of forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by a foreign object, and forcible rape of Jane Doe 1. He was found not guilty on the charge of sexual battery by restraint, in the case of Jane Doe 3.
Weinstein, who pleaded not guilty and appeared in court Thursday in a wheelchair, was on trial for two counts of rape and five sexual assault counts for incidents occurring between 2004 and 2013.
The jury hung on three counts, including sexual battery by restraint of Jane Doe 2, as well as forcible oral copulation and forcible rape of Jane Doe 4 -- who has self-identified as Jennifer Siebel Newsom, wife of California Gov. Gavin Newsom. A mistrial was declared in the charges in which the jury could not reach a verdict.
Eight women testified during the trial, including Newsom, who claimed that Weinstein, who has been held behind bars since he was extradited from New York to L.A. in the summer of 2021, raped her in 2005.
According to Deadline, Deputy D.A. Marlene Martinez, during closing arguments, referred to Weinstein as a "degenerate rapist" who unleashed a sexual and psychological "reign of terror" on his victims for decades. Weinstein's attorney, Alan Jackson, argued the D.A.'s office had nothing on his client and failed to build a case beyond a reasonable doubt.
"Take my word for it, I didn't consent," said Jackson in the courtroom last month, via Deadline. "The truth is immutable. It's not a feeling. It's not a whim. It's not a hashtag."
Weinstein's conviction came nearly three years after a Manhattan jury found him guilty of third-degree rape and one count of a criminal sex act. Weinstein, who pleaded not guilty to those charges, was sentenced to 23 years in prison.
In August 2022, however, a New York judge granted Weinstein an appeal of his conviction.
In the U.S., help is available for survivors of sexual violence and their families. RAINN offers resources at 1-800-656-HOPE and on their website, www.rainn.org
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