#MeToo: Harvey Weinstein Sentenced to 23 Years in Jail in New York Rape Trial

Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and assault.

The disgraced Hollywood producer was found guilty in a trial in New York last month.

Hervey Weinstein, 67, appeared in court on March 11 in a wheelchair.

The producer’s lawyers had appealed for leniency, saying even the minimum sentence of five years could be a “life sentence”.

However, prosecutors argued Harvey Weinstein should be given the maximum possible sentence given his “lifetime of abuse” towards women and “lack of remorse” for his actions.

Harvey Weinstein addressed the court for the first time on March 11, saying he had “deep remorse” but described him and other men as “totally confused” by events in comments seen as critical to the #MeToo movement.

Dozens of women have come forward with allegations of misconduct, including rape, against Harvey Weinstein since October 2017.

He has consistently denied wrongdoing and these were the first charges to make it to trial.

Harvey Weinstein still faces further criminal charges, for rape and assault, in Los Angeles.

His lawyers have vowed to appeal against his conviction.

Harvey Weinstein was found guilty of committing a first-degree criminal sexual act against production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 and of the third-degree rape of aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013.

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New York jurors acquitted Weinstein of the most serious charges, of predatory sexual assault, which could have seen him given an even longer jail term.

All six women who testified against him during his trial sat together as he was sentenced and told to register as a sex offender.

The two women he was convicted of assaulting both read out victim impact statements in court.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. thanked the court for the tough sentence, saying it put “predators and abusive partners” elsewhere in society “on notice”.

Speaking outside court, Gloria Allred, who represents three of the accusers, held up a sign with the words: “This is what justice looks like.”

“For all those who are still preying on women, who want to engage in the high risk-taking of harming women and thinking you’ll get away with it, that gamble is likely not to pay off for you anymore,” she added.

“And if you’re a high-profile figure, don’t expect anything but equal justice.”

The US Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) praised the significant prison term Harvey Weinstein was given.