NEW YORK: Harvey Weinstein is due back in court Wednesday as a judge is set to decide when the disgraced movie mogul’s #MeToo retrial will start and whether it will include an allegation involving a woman who wasn’t in the original case.
Weinstein, 72, wants the extra charge thrown out, arguing through lawyers that Manhattan prosecutors only brought it to bolster their case with a third accuser after New York’s highest court overturned his 2020 conviction on rape and sexual assault charges involving two women.
Judge Curtis Farber is expected to rule on that and other matters, including the trial date — a task that’s been complicated by an increasingly crowded court calendar.
Weinstein’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, is representing conservative strategist Steve Bannon in a border wall fraud trial that’s set to start March 4 before a different Manhattan judge. Meanwhile, Farber has a murder trial in March.
Before Bannon’s trial date was set last week, Aidala had suggested that Weinstein’s trial go first in “the interest of humanity,” citing the ex-studio boss’ declining health.
Weinstein is being treated for numerous medical conditions, including chronic myeloid leukemia and diabetes.
“They know that Mr. Weinstein is dying of cancer and is an innocent man right now in the state of New York,” Aidala argued in court last week. He pleaded to prosecutors: “Can I try this dying man’s case first?”
Weinstein is being retried on charges that he forcibly performed oral sex on a movie and TV production assistant in 2006 and raped an aspiring actor in 2013. The additional charge, filed last September, alleges he forced oral sex on a different woman at a Manhattan hotel in 2006.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office said in court papers that the woman, who has not been identified publicly, came forward to prosecutors just days before the start of Weinstein’s first trial but was not part of that case.
Prosecutors said they did not pursue the women’s allegations after Weinstein was convicted and sentenced to 23 years in prison, but they revisited them and secured a new indictment after the state’s Court of Appeals threw out his conviction last April.
Farber ruled in October to combine the new indictment and existing charges into one trial.
Weinstein’s lawyers contend that prosecutors prejudiced him by waiting nearly five years to bring the additional charge, suggesting they had elected not to include the allegation in his first trial so they could use it later if his conviction were reversed.
Prosecutors called that thinking “absurd,” countering that Weinstein’s lawyers would have also been outraged if he had been charged based on the third woman’s allegation either during his first trial or immediately after his conviction.
Weinstein “would likely have characterized that timing as a vindictive and gratuitous pile-on,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing last month.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office said the previously uncharged allegation “required a sensitive investigation” and serious contemplation before seeking an indictment, in part because there are no eyewitnesses to the alleged assault and no scientific or other physical evidence.
Weinstein co-founded the film and television production companies Miramax and The Weinstein Company and was once one of the most powerful people in Hollywood, having produced films such as “Pulp Fiction” and “The Crying Game.”
In 2017, he became the most prominent villain of the #MeToo movement, which erupted when women began going public with accounts of his behavior.
He has long maintained that any sexual activity was consensual.
In vacating Weinstein’s conviction, the Court of Appeals ruled that the trial judge, James M. Burke, unfairly allowed testimony against him based on allegations from other women that were not part of the case. Burke is no longer on the bench.
Weinstein was convicted in Los Angeles in 2022 of another rape. His 16-year prison sentence in that case still stands, but his lawyers appealed in June, arguing he did not get a fair trial.
Weinstein has remained in custody in New York’s Rikers Island jail complex, with occasional trips to a hospital for medical treatment, while awaiting the retrial.
The Associated Press does not generally identify people alleging sexual assault unless they consent to be named.
Harvey Weinstein due in court as judge weighs scope of his #MeToo retrial and when it will start
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Harvey Weinstein due in court as judge weighs scope of his #MeToo retrial and when it will start
- Judge Curtis Farber is expected to decide Wednesday when the disgraced movie mogul’s #MeToo retrial will start
- He will also decide whether it will include an allegation involving a woman who wasn’t in the original case
WEF confirms investigation into claims against founder Schwab
- Schwab had already stepped down as executive chairman last year
GENEVA: The World Economic Forum confirmed Wednesday that it has launched an investigation into allegations made against its founder Klaus Schwab that reportedly prompting his resignation this week.
In a statement confirming a report by the Wall Street Journal, the WEF said its board of trustees "unanimously supported the Audit and Risk Committee's decision to initiate an independent investigation following a whistleblower letter containing allegations against former Chairman Klaus Schwab".
The WEF, which hosts the annual meeting of wealthy, famous and influential global elites at the luxury Swiss ski resort of Davos, initially provided no explanation when it announced Monday that its longtime chairman had stepped down from the board with immediate effect.
In the first statement, the WEF's board hailed Schwab's "outstanding achievements" in his 55 years in charge.
But the WSJ reported that the decision had been prompted by a board decision to investigate allegations of financial and ethical misconduct by the longtime leader and his wife Hilde.
Schwab denies the claims, the paper added.
The letter, said to have been sent by anonymous current and former WEF staff, "included allegations that Klaus Schwab asked junior employees to withdraw thousands of dollars from ATMs on his behalf and used Forum funds to pay for private, in-room massages at hotels," wrote the WSJ, which said it had seen the letter and spoken with people familiar with the case.
"It also alleged that his wife Hilde, a former Forum employee, scheduled 'token' Forum-funded meetings in order to justify luxury holiday travel at the organisation's expense," the paper said.
The letter also reportedly raised concerns about how Schwab treated female employees, and how his decades-long leadership allegedly allowed instances of sexual harassment and discriminatory behaviour to go unchecked.
Schwab could not immediately be reached for comment but according to the paper, he had vehemently denied all the allegations and warned board members he would sue if they pursued an investigation.
Despite this, the board of trustees decided at an emergency meeting on Sunday to open a probe, and Schwab opted to resign immediately.
In its statement Wednesday, WEF stressed that its decision "was made after consultation with external legal counsel and in line with the Forum's fiduciary responsibilities".
"While the Forum takes these allegations seriously, it emphasises that they remain unproven, and will await the outcome of the investigation to comment further."
Schwab had already stepped down as executive chairman last year, with Norway's former foreign minister Borge Brende taking over daily management.
A few weeks ago, the 87-year-old Schwab said he would step down as non-executive chairman but with the handover lasting until January 2027.
WEF has said that vice chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe will serve as interim chairman as a search committee looks for a permanent replacement for Schwab.
List of major terror attacks in Indian-administered Kashmir over the years
- Twenty-six people were killed and 17 were injured when suspected militants opened fire at tourists in Jammu and Kashmir territory
- Attack took place on Tuesday in meadow in Pahalgam area of Himalayan federal territory, dead included 25 Indians and one Nepalese national
NEW DELHI: Twenty-six people were killed and 17 were injured when suspected militants opened fire at tourists in India’s Jammu and Kashmir territory, police said on Wednesday, the worst such attack in the country in nearly two decades.
The attack took place on Tuesday in a meadow in the Pahalgam area of the scenic, Himalayan federal territory and the dead included 25 Indians and one Nepalese national, police said.
Here is a look at major attacks over the years in India’s only Muslim-majority region, where Islamist militants have fought security forces for decades.
NOVEMBER 2024
At least 11 people were injured when militants threw a grenade at security personnel in a crowded flea market in the main city of Srinagar.
OCTOBER 2024
Six migrant workers and a doctor were shot dead by militants who opened fire near a tunnel construction site. The Resistance Front (TRF) claimed responsibility.
JUNE 2024
At least nine people died and 33 were injured when a bus carrying Hindu pilgrims plunged into a deep gorge after a suspected militant attack.
MAY 2024
Suspected militants opened fire on a tourist couple from the northwestern city of Jaipur, injuring them both.
FEBRUARY 2019
At least 44 security personnel were killed after a suicide bomber rammed a car into a bus carrying Indian paramilitary police in Kashmir. Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) claimed responsibility.
JULY 2017
At least seven Hindu pilgrims, on their way back from the revered Amarnath shrine deep in the Himalayas, died when their bus got caught in crossfire after two militant attacks on police in the area.
SEPTEMBER 2016
At least 17 soldiers were killed as separatists armed with AK-47 assault rifles and grenades stormed an army base in Uri near the disputed border with Pakistan.
Beijing slams ‘groundless accusations’ after Ukraine summons Chinese envoy
CHINA: Beijing on Wednesday dismissed as “groundless” Ukraine’s allegation that Chinese fighters and companies were directly assisting Russia’s military.
“China firmly opposes groundless accusations and political manipulation,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a press conference in response to a question about China’s ambassador being summoned by Kyiv.
Pope Francis’s coffin arrives in Saint Peter’s Basilica to lie in state
- Heads of state are expected for Pope Francis’ funeral Saturday in St. Peter’s Square
- The three days of public viewing are largely for ordinary Catholics to grieve the pontiff
VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis’s body arrived at Saint Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday to lie in state before his weekend funeral.
The late pope’s open wooden coffin was carried by pallbearers the 500 meters from the Casa Santa Marta where he lived and died, behind a procession of red-robed cardinals.
Heads of state are expected for the funeral Saturday in St. Peter’s Square, but the three days of public viewing are largely for ordinary Catholics to grieve the 88-year-old pope, who died Monday after suffering a stroke.
Francis first lay in state in the Santa Marta Domus in a private viewing for Vatican residents and the papal household. Images released by the Vatican on Tuesday showed Francis lying in an open casket, wearing the traditional pointed headdress of bishops and red robes, his hands folded over a rosary. The Vatican’s No. 2, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was pictured praying by Francis.
Italian police have tightened security for the viewing and the funeral, carrying out foot and horse patrols around the Vatican, where pilgrims continued to arrive for the Holy Year celebrations that Francis opened in December. The faithful who walk through St. Peter’s Holy Door are granted indulgences, a way to help atone for sins.
“For me, Pope Francis represents a great pastor, as well as a great friend to all of us,’’ said Micale Sales, visiting St. Peter’s Basilica from Brazil.
“I think he spread a positive message around the world, saying there shouldn’t be any violence, there should be peace around the world,’’ said Amit Kukreja, from Australia.
The funeral has been set for Saturday at 10 a.m. in St. Peter’s Square, and will be attended by leaders including US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelensky.
Cardinals are continuing their meetings this week to plan the conclave to elect Francis’ successor, make other decisions about running the Catholic Church as world leaders and the ordinary faithful grieve the pontiff’s death.
History’s first Latin American pontiff charmed the world with his humble style and concern for the poor but alienated many conservatives with critiques of capitalism and climate change. He last appeared in public on Sunday with an Easter blessing and popemobile tour through a cheering crowd in St. Peter’s Square.
He had some reservations about looping through the square packed with 50,000 faithful, Vatican News reported on Tuesday, but overcame them – and was thankful that he had greeted the crowd. He died the next morning.
“The death of a pope is not a small thing, because we’ve lost our leader,’’ said Julio Henrique from Brazil. “But still, in a few days, we will have a new leader. So … the thing of hope remains. Who will assume Peter’s throne?”
China-led lunar base to include nuclear power plant on moon’s surface, space official
- The world’s second largest economy is aiming to become a major space power and land astronauts on the moon by 2030
SHANGHAI: Preliminary plans for the China and Russia-led International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) include building a nuclear reactor on the moon’s surface, a presentation by a Chinese space official on Wednesday showed.
The presentation by Pei Zhaoyu, chief engineer for China’s 2028 Chang’e-8 mission, showed that the base’s energy supply could also depend on large-scale solar arrays, which would be built on the moon’s surface.
China’s Chang’e-8 mission aims to lay the groundwork for the construction of a permanent manned lunar base. The world’s second largest economy is aiming to become a major space power and land astronauts on the moon by 2030.
China’s timeline to build an outpost on the moon’s south pole coincides with NASA’s more ambitious and advanced Artemis program, which aims to put US astronauts back on the lunar surface in December 2025.
Wu Weiren, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and chief designer of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Project, said last year that a “basic model” of the ILRS, with the South Pole of the Moon as its core, would be built by 2035.
The Chang’e lunar probe launches are part of the construction phase for the “basic model” outlined by Wu.
In future, China will create the “555 Project”, inviting 50 countries, 500 international scientific research institutions, and 5,000 overseas researchers to join the ILRS.
