A Manhattan judge declared a mistrial Friday in Harvey Weinstein's rape trial after the jury deadlocked on the charge that he raped aspiring actress Jessica Mann in a hotel room in 2013. Justice Curtis Farber said the jurors were "hopelessly deadlocked" after more than two days of deliberations. It marked the third time a jury failed to reach a verdict on this specific allegation.
The case has dragged on for years. Weinstein's first trial in 2020 ended with a 23-year prison sentence that was later overturned. A second trial last year also produced a hung jury on the rape count. Prosecutors this time presented only Mann's testimony against Weinstein's denials, with no physical evidence.
The hung jury leaves Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg facing a decision on whether to pursue a fourth trial. Weinstein's 2013 allegations helped ignite the #MeToo movement, and his 2020 conviction was seen as a watershed moment. Public interest in the movement has faded, and prosecutors moved forward with a single-accuser case despite that narrower focus.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing