Harvey Weinstein Officially Charged

Bella Breakdown

This morning Hollywood producer, Harvey Weinstein, was arrested after turning himself into authorities. The New York Police Department released in a statement that Weinstein has been arrested and is charged with rape, criminal sex act, and sexual misconduct for incidents involving two women.

Though there are charges for two women, close to 80 women claim that they were sexually abused by Weinstein. Of these cases only three are within the New York statute of limitations for the crimes committed.

One accusation by former Boardwalk Empire actor, Paz de la Huerta, claims that he raped her twice in 2010. Weinstein’s lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, repeatedly said, “Mr. Weinstein has always maintained that he has never engaged in nonconsensual sexual acts,” defending his client in court.

Brafman has yet to release a statement since the reports of Weinstein turning himself in and being charged. The negotiations between Cyrus Vance Jr’s office and Brafman begin, with the predicted bail for $1 million and Weinstein will surrender his passport.

The investigation into Weinstein’s sexual misconducts are being performed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York with the office of Geoffrey Berman. The open-investigation will look into whether Weinstein crossed state lines with the intent of committing an assault in New York, violating sex-trafficking laws.

Other investigations have been opened with the Manhattan District Attorney and the NYPD. The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating into three separate cases submitted to the L.A. County District Attorney, with two cases of sexual assault passed through Beverly Hills Police.

There are accusations from women in the UK, with police still investigating these allegations. These are only a couple of cases, with dozens more that are coming forward at this investigation progresses. This case shows that the casting couch experience is all too real in Hollywood, while spreading awareness for unwanted sexual assault and promoting the #MeToo movement.