Alvin Bragg Set to Try Weinstein Again in Changed #MeToo Climate

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has secured convictions against high-profile defendants like Donald Trump, Jonathan Majors, and Cuba Gooding Jr.

But on Tuesday his office will tee off again against one who got away: Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced movie producer whose sexual assault conviction was overturned in New York last year.

All sides of the case agree this won’t look like 2020, when Weinstein was tried in New York in a landmark moment for the #MeToo movement.

The second trial “will look different,” Bragg told Bloomberg Law in a phone interview.

While careful choosing his words days before jury selection begins, Bragg said he decided to retry the case after New York’s top court tossed the jury verdict because it’s “important for survivors that have alleged conduct for which we’re still seeking accountability.”

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The New York Court of Appeals decision overturning Weinstein’s conviction was “on specific evidentiary issues,” Bragg said. “That doesn’t constrain us from going forward.”

Climate Change

Far from the glamour Weinstein once presided over as one of Hollywood’s most powerful men, his retrial will take place on the 13th floor of a dingy Manhattan criminal courthouse. Spectators will sit on stiff wooden benches when jury selection begins April 15 for a trial expected to last five weeks.

The New York Court of Appeals overturned the 2020 conviction and 23-year sentence in a 4-3 decision by Judge Jenny Rivera, saying the lower court unlawfully allowed women who weren’t part of the charges against Weinstein to testify for the prosecution. (Weinstein was also convicted in California, a case he’s appealed.)

This time, three women alleging sexual abuse by Weinstein are expected to take the stand—two who testified in the first trial, and one new accuser. Unlike the first case, there won’t be additional witnesses claiming abuse that wasn’t charged.

Opponents and advocates of #MeToo agree times have changed.

Alan Dershowitz, the Harvard Law professor emeritus and Jeffrey Epstein attorney, said “it will be a different case that shows how dramatically the excesses of the #MeToo movement influenced cases like these.” Dershowitz, who was a Weinstein legal consultant previously, added: “It may not be nice to have quid-pro-quo transactional sex, but it’s not rape.”

“There’s fear in the air” now, said Christian F. Nunes, president of the National Organization for Women. Nunes, a #MeToo supporter, also worried that compared to early 2020, it’ll be tougher to find jurors who aren’t influenced by “disinformation” and social media.

Heather Mac Donald, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute and #MeToo critic, noted that the public allegations have ebbed. “We are not seeing the regular putting forth of these accusations,” she said. Still, “it’s hard to say what the public actually thinks,” she added.

Stakes for Bragg

The case comes as Bragg faces re-election after four years as Manhattan’s top prosecutor. He’s favored to win, but is approaching a June primary and November general election.

His opponents have have hit him as soft on crime. A Bragg spokeswoman said murders in Manhattan are down since he took office and hate crime prosecutions are up.

Republican candidate Maud Maron said that the case should be a “layup” for Bragg and a loss could influence voters: “This is one he has to win.” A Bragg spokeswoman responded: “Judging an office on its convictions alone is shortsighted.”

In a court hallway after pretrial arguments last week, Weinstein attorney Michael V. Cibella sounded bullish, saying he feels “confident” his client will prevail.

Bragg wasn’t making predictions: “The jury will make a decision,” he said in the interview, “and then we’ll be back up on appeal.”