Former Hollywood magnate Harvey Weinstein is set to face a retrial in the United States, a year after his 2020 rape conviction was overturned.
Warning: This story contains details about sexual abuse that readers may find distressing
A driving force for the #MeToo movement, the allegations against the 73-year-old will be heard by New York's highest court in proceedings starting Wednesday, local time.
The retrial involves accusations from three women — an aspiring actor who said Weinstein raped her in 2013; and two women who made separate allegations of forced oral sex in 2006.
One of the latter two was not part of the original trial.
Here's what to know.
What was Weinstein's original sentencing?
In February 2020, the Manhattan Supreme Court found Weinstein guilty of raping then-actress Jessica Mann at the DoubleTree Hotel in New York on March 18, 2013.
Ms Mann said following that incident, she became involved in a romantic relationship with Weinstein for several years during which she was the subject of repeated sexual assaults.
Weinstein was also convicted of sexually assaulting Miriam "Mimi" Haleyi, a film production assistant, at his New York apartment in 2006 after the pair worked together on The Weinstein Company.
She testified that soon after he invited her over, he backed her into a bedroom, held her down on the bed and forced himself on her orally, yanking out her tampon.
Ms Mann and Ms Haleyi were among six women who testified against Weinstein in that trial, following which he was sentenced to 23 years in prison.
Outside of court, more than 100 women, including high-profile Hollywood names Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie and Rose McGowan, have accused him of sexual misconduct stretching back decades.
Weinstein was, however, acquitted on the most serious of the charges — a single count of first-degree rape as well as two counts of predatory sexual assault, which carried a potential life sentence.
He has maintained his innocence and denies raping or sexually assaulting anyone.
Why was Weinstein's conviction overturned?
New York's Court of Appeals in April 2024 ruled that the original trial judge, James Burke, allowed prejudicial testimony in what he termed "egregious errors".
In a 4-3 decision, the court determined that Weinstein had not received a fair trial because it also included evidence from women who were not part of the case.
"We conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes because that testimony served no material non-propensity purpose," the ruling read.
Judge Burke's term expired in 2022, and he is no longer on the bench.
The reversal of Weinstein's conviction dismayed #MeToo activists and was seen by the United Nations as a failure for women survivors who "risked their safety, livelihood and jobs to bravely come forward and share their ordeal".
"If a new trial goes ahead, survivors will be asked to relive their alleged experiences, which may lead to further retraumatisation and unnecessary distress," UN experts said at the time.
What is Weinstein's retrial examining?
Weinstein will again be tried on the same rape and sexual assault charges from the first trial, with an additional count of violent sexual assault brought forward by an unnamed woman in September last year.
The three allegations to be visited include:
- Sex crime (of Miriam Haleyy in 2006)
- Third-degree rape (of Jessica Mann in 2013)
- Forced oral sex (of an unnamed woman in 2006)
The retrial is expected to last up to six weeks.
Weinstein is also challenging another 2022 rape conviction in Los Angeles for which he was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
He currently remains imprisoned at the notorious Rikers Island prison in New York's Bronx.
Who is on the jury?
A majority-female jury will be deciding the landmark #MeToo case in Weinstein's retrial, in contrast to the five women-seven men board that delivered the conviction in 2020.
This time the selection process for the main panel has yielded a seven-woman, five-man jury and five alternate jurors. Alternates step in if a member of the main panel cannot see the trial through.
The 12 members, drawn from Manhattan's jury pool, include a physics researcher, a photographer, a dietitian, a therapist, an investment bank software engineer and a fire safety director. Others have experience in real estate, TV commercials, debt collection, social work and other fields.
Some have served as jurors or grand jurors multiple times before, and others, never. Those chosen were quizzed about their backgrounds, life experiences and various other points that could relate to their ability to be fair and impartial about the highly publicised case.
Hundreds of other potential jurors were excused for reasons ranging from language barriers to strong opinions about Weinstein — "the first word that came in my head was 'pig,'" said one man who was soon let go.
"You may hear sexual allegations here of a salacious nature — graphic, perhaps. Would hearing that indicate that … Mr Weinstein must be guilty?" defence attorney Mike Cibella asked one prospective juror on Monday. The woman, who ultimately was chosen, answered no.
Prosecutor Shannon Lucey sought assurances that prospective jurors could put aside any position or feelings they had about the #MeToo movement.
"Is there anyone who is going to think of the movement and think, 'OK, that's just something that I have to keep in the back of my mind when I'm deciding this case?' Everyone can put that aside?" she asked a group of 24 possible jurors. All indicated they could do so.
ABC/AP
