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Weinstein pleads not guilty to new indictment; judge delays trial

By Daniel Uria & Clyde Hughes
Harvey Weinstein arrives for a hearing at New York State Supreme Court on July 11 in New York City. He will return to Manhattan court Monday. File Photo by Peter Foley/UPI
Harvey Weinstein arrives for a hearing at New York State Supreme Court on July 11 in New York City. He will return to Manhattan court Monday. File Photo by Peter Foley/UPI | License Photo

Aug. 26 (UPI) -- Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein pleaded not guilty Monday to revised sexual misconduct accusations that stem from a woman saying he assaulted her 26 years ago.

The new indictment was publicly unsealed at the hearing and detailed testimony by accuser and former Sopranos actress Annabella Sciorra.

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Weinstein only spent moments in the courtroom, where Judge James Burke also delayed the former mogul's criminal trial by four months, to Jan. 9.

Burke had prevented Sciorra from testifying as a witness because she was not a part of the previous grand jury investigation. Prosecutors returned Weinstein's case to the grand jury so Sciorra could testify.

The 67-year-old Weinstein faces two counts of predatory sexual assault, one count of criminal sexual act in the first degree and counts of first-degree and third-degree rape.

Prosecutors have been seeking testimony from Sciorra, who in 2017 accused Weinstein of raping her in her apartment in 1993. The accusation could not be included in the larger case due to the statute of limitations, but her testimony could be used to attempt to show an example of Weinstein's pattern of past behavior.

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Weinstein's attorneys Donna Rotunno and Arthur Aidala condemned what they described as an "unprecedented" fourth arraignment.

"There has been no case in recent memory where a district attorney has gone back to the grand jury on two separate occasions to re-present a case before that body in the hopes of obtaining an indictment that can withstand the scrutiny of a trial jury," they said. "This action by the prosecutor bespeaks the desperation that has engulfed their case.

The attorneys said they will seek to have the new indictment dismissed.

Weinstein's attorneys are also seeking to move the trial away from New York City, on grounds the extensive news and social media coverage has "universally demonized" Weinstein, his attorneys said. That request is being made separately in an appellate court. A ruling there could come Monday.

Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Harriet Galvin filed a response to the request Friday, stating Weinstein's defense failed to show it's impossible to achieve an impartial jury or why press coverage would be less harmful in any other location.

"This motion, lacking any solid factual or legal basis, should be viewed as a transparent attempt to delay the proceedings," she wrote.

Weinstein was arrested 15 months ago on charges related to accusations that he sexually assaulted two women in 2013 and 2014. He remained free on $1 million bail.

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First-degree rape and criminal sex act are class B felonies and third-degree rape is in class E. The most serious rape charge carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison.

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