MANHATTAN, NY — In a retrial that failed to capture the media frenzy of his first courtroom reckoning, former film mogul Harvey Weinstein was found guilty Wednesday of sexually assaulting former production assistant Miriam Haley — a partial verdict handed down by a jury fraught with internal conflict and bitter division.
The 73-year-old, once an untouchable figure in Hollywood’s power corridors, was acquitted on one set of charges and faces ongoing deliberation on another, stemming from accusations brought by aspiring actress Jessica Mann. Meanwhile, jurors rejected the testimony of former model Kaja Sokola, resulting in an acquittal on that count.
Weinstein, seated in a wheelchair and cloaked in the same detached demeanor that marked earlier proceedings, watched as the jury of seven women and five men returned the partial verdict. When the jury foreman delivered the “guilty” decision on Haley’s account, Weinstein did not react. But as he exited the courtroom, he muttered two words: “Not true.”
The outcome marks a complex legal moment for the disgraced producer, whose previous 23-year sentence from a 2020 conviction was overturned last year due to procedural flaws. This retrial, quieter and more procedural than its predecessor, still managed to lay bare deep tensions—not only within the jury box, but within the public’s evolving appetite for accountability in the post-MeToo era.
Jury Breakdown and Breakdown in Jury
Drama erupted earlier in the day as the jury foreman, visibly shaken, informed the judge he could no longer serve after what he described as threats from a fellow juror. Judge Curtis Farber revealed that one juror allegedly said to the foreman, “I’ll meet you outside one day.”
Weinstein’s legal team immediately moved for a mistrial, citing an atmosphere of hostility that compromised their client’s right to a fair hearing. Weinstein himself addressed the court, invoking the severity of the stakes in a rare outburst: “This is my life that’s on the line — and it’s not fair,” he declared.
Judge Farber, unmoved by the defense’s argument, allowed deliberations to continue. The result was a fractured verdict that leaves one charge unresolved and Weinstein’s legal future partially in limbo.
The Echo of a Movement
This retrial reengaged — however briefly — with the undercurrents of the MeToo movement that first exploded in 2017, catalyzed by the wave of allegations against Weinstein. Haley’s testimony, in particular, stood as a renewed reminder of the original ignition point for a cultural shift that toppled not just Weinstein, but the broader impunity of powerful men in media and politics.
And yet, the mood surrounding this trial was far more subdued. Gone were the daily protest lines. The courthouse steps, once the stage for symbolic demonstrations, were quiet. In part, that may be due to the competing spectacle of another high-profile trial: Sean “Diddy” Combs, whose legal troubles commanded national headlines from the building next door.
A Legacy Rewritten in Courtrooms
Weinstein, who once dominated award seasons with titles like Shakespeare in Love and Gangs of New York, is now better known as a case study in institutional failure and delayed justice. More than 80 women have come forward since the first reports surfaced — a number that continues to shape public discourse even as the legal machinery slowly grinds through each individual charge.
He is already serving a 16-year sentence handed down in California for a separate conviction involving a European actress, meaning any sentence from this New York retrial will stack atop an already extensive prison term.
Though Weinstein declined to testify, he did grant one interview during the retrial, conceding to what he described as “immoral” behavior — a word far removed from the criminal gravity of the charges he faces.
As the jury continues to deliberate on the unresolved rape charge, the Weinstein saga remains a fragmented tale — part cautionary fable, part unfinished reckoning. What’s certain is that the man who once manufactured blockbusters now finds himself trapped in a drama not of his own making, with no clear end in sight.
