Harvey Weinstein avoided a fourth trial on a New York rape charge after his accuser said she could not endure testifying again, leading prosecutors to drop the #MeToo-era case on Thursday. The movie mogul still stands convicted of another sexual felony in New York and others in California, and he remains behind bars. But the New York rape charge had remained unresolved after an overturned conviction followed by two hung juries. The judge formally dismissed the charge Thursday, the AP reports. Weinstein had a neutral expression as court officers led him out of court in his wheelchair. The 74-year-old denies all the accusations.
The rape charge concerned an allegation that he raped hairstylist and actor Jessica Mann in a Manhattan hotel in 2013. Mann has testified that she also had a consensual, on-and-off relationship with Weinstein, who was married at the time. But she told jurors she repeatedly tried to leave and said no to any sexual activity as he cornered her in the hotel room. She said he persevered, demanding that she undress and grabbing her arms, until she was afraid to keep protesting. "After a lot of thought and reflection, I have chosen not to proceed with a fourth trial against Harvey Weinstein," Mann wrote in a letter that a prosecutor read to the court. "It was clear to me at this last trial I could no longer endure going through this any longer."
The trial took a visible toll on Mann, 40, who testified for five days and was questioned for the first time about a diary-like, soul-baring note she wrote two days after the alleged rape, which the note did not mention. At one point during her testimony, Mann said she was struggling to focus, prompting court to wrap up early for the day. Prosecutor Nicole Blumberg said Thursday that prosecutors believe Mann and hail her "bravery, strength, courage, and inspiration" to other survivors, but given her feelings about proceeding, "dismissal is appropriate."
-
Weinstein was convicted in 2020 of raping Mann. Then an appeals court overturned that verdict for reasons unrelated to her testimony. Jury deliberations broke down at a 2025 retrial, and jurors deadlocked again at another retrial this spring. The rape charge in this case was a low-level felony punishable by up to four years in prison—less time than Weinstein already has served. He faces considerably longer sentences on his other, separate convictions in New York and California, where he was found guilty of raping an Italian actress in Los Angeles and sentenced to 16 years.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
