Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 16 years in rape case

Former film mogul Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 16 more years in prison for the 2013 rape of an Italian actor-model in Los Angeles. Weinstein is already serving 23-year prison term for a sexual misconduct conviction in New York and it is all more likely that the disgraced Hollywood mogul will spend the remainder of his life behind bars.

Moments before he was given an additional 16 years, Weinstein, who attended court in a wheelchair, begged the judge for leniency.

‘Please don't sentence me to life in prison. I don't deserve it,’ the disgraced Hollywood star told a Los Angeles court.

Harvey Weinstein maintained he was innocent and the victim of a ‘set-up’ before the sentencing.

In December last year, a Los Angeles jury convicted him of one count of rape and two counts of sexual assault involving an actor. The victim, known as Jane Doe 1 to protect her anonymity, spoke in court before the sentence was read. She recalled the trauma she had endured for ‘many years’ since the assault.

However, Weinstein told Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lisa Lench that he did not know the victim.

Over 80 people have made rape and misconduct claims about Harvey Weinstein dating back as far as the late 1970s.

In 2020, Harvey Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault against a production assistant in 2006 and an aspiring actor in 2013. The conviction was seen as a milestone in the #MeToo movement.

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