Longtime Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein was indicted on rape and criminal sex act charges in New York City Wednesday, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. revealed.
Weinstein, who surrendered to police on Friday, faces charges of first and third degree rape and first degree criminal sexual act.
“This indictment brings the defendant another step closer to accountability for the crimes of violence with which he is now charged,” Vance said. “Our office will try this case not in the press, but in the courtroom where it belongs. The defendant’s recent assault on the integrity of the survivors of the legal process is predictable. We are confident that when the jury hears the evidence, it will reject these attacks out of hand.”
The indictment comes after Weinstein refused to testify before the grand jury. Weinstein’s attorney, Benjamin Brafman, claimed there was insufficient time to prepare a testimony.
The charges stemmed from accusations raised by former actress Lucia Evans, who claims that Weinstein coerced her to perform oral sex on him nearly 15 years ago. Another unidentified woman accused Weinstein of raping her in a hotel room.
The flurry of accusations against Weinstein began last fall when The New York Times reported on multiple settlements he had reached with multiple women over the span of several decades.
Weinstein has rejected all accusations leveled against him, and Brafman claimed Tuesday that Weinstein remains “confident he’s going to clear his name.”
