(PatriotsUnited.org) – Harvey Weinstein’s defense attorney is pushing for his sentence to be appealed, claiming that the movie mogul at the heart of the “#MeToo” scandal was unfairly convicted. On Wednesday, Attorney Donna Rotunno, claims that the multi-millionaire Hollywood producer was “shaken” by his severe sentence, as she told Albany’s Court of Appeals in New York that his 2020 rape conviction ought to be appealed. She complained that the 2020 judge has “essentially” given Weinstein a life sentence.
In February 2020 Weinstein was found guilty of forcing oral acts on Mimi Haley and the third-degree rape of Jessica Mann. For these serious offenses he was handed down a 23-year prison sentence. Amid the huge public attention given to the case, Arthur Aidala, Weinstein’s lawyer, claimed to the court that his client had not gotten a fair trial.”
Weinstein’s advocates claim that the erstwhile Hollywood mogul’s personal character, rather than hard evidence, was focused on in the 2020 trial. They assert that they “tried his character”. They also complained that, ahead of the trial, Weinstein was comparing the trial to the “stripping naked” and photographed so the jury could examine images of his body, which was mentioned in evidence regarding the physical transgressions he was convicted for.
Juda Engelmayer, Weinstein’s public spokesperson, has stressed the court’s concerns over numerous issues throughout the appeal process, including the introduction of the Sandoval ruling and the manner in which Juror No. 11 presented facts from her book and research. She told Fox News on 14th February that the legal team remain “hopeful” that their arguments result in what she deemed “the proper outcome”.
His defense team also expressed concerns over New York State’s Supreme Court Justice James Burke’s approach to evidence and a juror who had published a novel which included a plot line about predatory men. Weinstein also faced further assault charges in California, where he was extradited in 2021. He was found guilty of multiple counts in December 2022, for which he was sentenced to 16 years behind bars. However, Weinstein’s expensive legal team appears steadfast in their plans to continue the appeal.
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