After five weeks of testimony from Harvey Weinstein’s accusers and prosecution witnesses in his New York sex crimes retrial, the defense has started calling its own witnesses. However, it remains uncertain if the former film producer himself will take the stand.
Weinstein, 73, is currently deciding whether to testify—a move that could significantly impact the trial’s outcome. His attorneys have been weighing the pros and cons with him in recent days. Defense lawyer Arthur Aidala described the decision as complicated, saying, “There’s no easy answer.”
Weinstein’s 2020 conviction was overturned by New York’s highest court, leading to the retrial. He denies all allegations, maintaining that any encounters with accusers were consensual. Notably, Weinstein did not testify during his first New York trial or a separate Los Angeles rape trial, where he was convicted and is appealing.
During the retrial, Weinstein has closely followed proceedings from the defense table, occasionally shaking his head at accusers’ testimonies and conferring quietly with his legal team. Aidala said Weinstein believes the defense has strongly challenged the prosecution’s evidence but is still considering whether he should share his side in this “he-said, she-said” case.
The defense began presenting witnesses Wednesday, including a physician-pharmacist addressing medication mentioned in testimony. On Thursday, jurors heard from Helga Samuelsen, who shared an apartment in 2005 with Kaja Sokola, one of Weinstein’s accusers. Samuelsen testified that Weinstein visited their apartment one evening in 2006, spending about half an hour in a bedroom with Sokola—contradicting Sokola’s earlier statement that she never spent time with Weinstein there.
Samuelsen said she did not discuss the visit with Sokola and described her own brief professional interactions with Weinstein, including efforts to help with her music career.
Throughout the prosecution’s case, Weinstein’s attorneys focused on questioning the credibility and reliability of the accusers—Sokola, Miriam Haley, and Jessica Mann—who allege sexual assaults linked to Weinstein’s abuse of power in the entertainment industry. Mann accuses Weinstein of raping her in 2013, while Haley and Sokola accuse him of forced oral sex in 2006.
The accusers have granted permission to be publicly named, diverging from the Associated Press’s usual policy on sexual assault victims.
Swifteradio.com
