Harvey Weinstein lawyers seek mercy for ‘historic’ fall and bad health

Harvey Weinstein’s his lawyers argue he deserves mercy for his already ‘historic fall from grace’ and serious health issues.

Harvey Weinstein leaves court during jury deliberations last month. Picture: AP

With prosecutors seeking a severe punishment for Harvey Weinstein in his #MeToo case, his lawyers argued on Tuesday that he deserved mercy for his already “historic fall from grace” and serious health issues.

In a letter filed in advance of Weinstein’s sentencing on Thursday for his New York rape conviction, his defence team asked judge James Burke to give him only five years behind bars — a far cry from the 29-year maximum term.

A man once admired for funding charitable causes during his rise to one of Hollywood’s most powerful producers now “cannot walk outside without being ­heckled,” the papers say.

“He has lost his means to earn a living. Simply put, his fall from grace has been historic, perhaps unmatched in the age of social media.”

Even if the ailing 67-year-old is given a lesser term, “the grave ­reality is that Mr Weinstein may not even outlive that term” making it “a de facto life sentence”.

From the start, Weinstein’s use of a walker to get in and out of court each day at his trial raised questions about his health. After his February 24 conviction, he was sent to Bellevue Hospital amid concerns about high blood pressure and heart palpitations for more than a week before being transferred last week to an infirmary at Riker Island jail complex.

In addition to the heart issues, Weinstein’s lawyers have said he was also dealing with the ramifi­cations of unsuccessful back surgery after a car crash last year and a condition that requires shots in his eyes so he does not go blind.

In their filing last week, prosecutors detailed a litany of alle­gations starting with a claim by a woman that she woke up in the middle of the night in a Buffalo, New York, hotel room in 1978 to find Weinstein on top of her and “forcing himself sexually on her”.

They said it fit a pattern that continued for decades: Weinstein getting young women alone in hotel rooms before sexually ­attacking them, often while trying to trick them into thinking it was a path to stardom.

Based on “a lifetime of abuse toward others, sexual and otherwise”, the judge should impose a sentence that “reflects the seriousness of the defendant’s offences” and punishes him for “his total lack of remorse for the harm he has done”, prosecutors wrote.

On the criminal sex act count, Weinstein faces a minimum of five years and a maximum of 25 years in prison, while the third-degree rape count carries a maximum penalty of four years in prison.

At Weinstein’s sentencing hearing, his accusers will again get a chance to confront him in court, and the former producer will be afforded another opportunity to speak. He declined to testify on his behalf at his trial, but at sentencing he can’t be cross-examined.

Once Weinstein is sentenced, he’ll be transferred from the city’s jail system to the state prison system. There, he will undergo an evaluation to determine which ­facility is best for his physical and security needs.

AP