By Mark Gray
3:00pm PDT, Apr 27, 2024
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In a stunning move, Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction has been overturned by the New York Court of Appeals on April 25.
The appellate court said the trial judge "unfairly" allowed women who weren't part of the case to testify against the disgraced film producer. Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison.
"We reaffirm that no person accused of illegality may be judged on proof of uncharged crimes that serve only to establish the accused's propensity for criminal behavior," wrote Judge Jenny Rivera in the court's majority opinion. "It is an abuse of judicial discretion to permit untested allegations of nothing more than bad behavior that destroys a defendant's character but sheds no light on their credibility as related to the criminal charges lodged against them."
Weinstein was one of the first major figures to fall during the MeToo movement, having been accused of sexual assault or rape by more than 80 women.
Despite the new court ruling, the movie mogul will remain imprisoned as he was also convicted of rape in Los Angeles in 2022. In that case, he was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Click through to see how names in entertainment and politics are reacting to the news…
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Rose McGowan took to Instagram to share a lengthy message with her followers in a video, saying in part, "I'm proud of how far we've come. How much we've awakened. What we know of ourselves to be true. And what we know of others to be true.
"No matter what they overturn, they cannot take away who we are, what we know, what we've gone through and what we can achieve in this life," she continued. "We are not victims. We are people that were injured by evil. And the evil sticks together, as witnessed and evidenced today, but we are better.
"To everyone out there fighting the good fight against this evil, these entities, these dark beings: You are light. You are beautiful. You matter. I'm with you."
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"That's really hard for the survivors. We still live in our truth. And we know what happened." –Ashley Judd via The New York Times
Ashley was the first actress to go on the record about Harvey Weinstein's behavior.
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"The reversal of Harvey Weinstein's conviction comes as a painful and infuriating affront to survivors and advocates everywhere. To every survivor in this case and every survivor who has to bear witness to this incorrigible marriage of justice, my heart is with you today, tomorrow, and forever." —Mariska Hargitay
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"Horrified! Day after #DenimDay honoring sexual violence survivors, Harvey Weinstein's conviction overturned, due partly to molyneux witnesses testifying to prior bad acts, like lioness Annabella Sciorra. Since when don't courts allow evidence of pattern of prior bad acts to be admitted? He's a prolific serial predator who raped/harmed 200+women! Disgusted w/justice system skew [toward] predators not victims" –Mira Sorvino
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"At the height of the #MeToo crusade's unchecked power, a N.Y. Court convicted miserable Harvey Weinstein by attacking his wretched character. But the judge went too far. He allowed women who never complained to authorities to give their negative stories about Weinstein basically without Weinstein ever having a chance to defend himself against them for fear of further incrimination. After hearing arguments made by Weinstein's ace attorney #ArthurAidala, as many predicted, New York's highest court overturned the judgment of the lower courts. The judge had gone too far. Weinstein is not yet a free man. He still faces a 2022 California conviction, which contains some of the same vulnerability as the N.Y. case now overthrown in a correct 4-3 ruling." —Geraldo Rivera
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"If you are a serial murderer, prior acts define your crime. If you are a serial rapist, prior acts define your crime. Harvey Weinstein is a serial rapist. He is currently rotting in an LA prison for the crime of rape. 16 years. PRIOR ACTS??? There are hundreds." —Ellen Barkin
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"The New York Court of Appeals on Thursday overturned the sex crimes conviction against Harvey Weinstein, the powerful Hollywood producer whose downfall stood as a symbol of the #MeToo movement. But Weinstein is still in prison for other crimes." —Gretchen Carlson
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"We're cautiously excited. He still has a long road ahead of him because of the Los Angeles case. We are studying the ramifications of the appeal right now." —Harvey Weinstein spokesperson Juda Engelmayer, via Deadline
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"They're grasping at straws to get Donald Trump in prison, and yet, Harvey Weinstein — convicted rapist, predator, the monster behind #MeToo — just had his rape conviction overturned? Lawfare." —Rep. Nancy Mace
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"Isn't it great — Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction gets tossed by the New York State Courts of Appeals while they keep Trump locked in a courtroom over nonsense!!!" —Jeanine Pirro
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"If there is any good that comes out of this news, I hope that it reignites people and their passion to not just say they want equality, not just say they want safety, but to really work towards it." —Amber Tamblyn
