Disgraced movie mogul and Democrat party mega-donor turned convicted Hollywood sex offender Harvey Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison on Wednesday following his conviction on two sex charges.
The judge’s decision likely represents a life sentence for Weinstein, who is 67 and has stated that he is in poor health.
Weinstein was found guilty last month of raping a hairstylist and forcibly performing oral sex on a former Project Runway production assistant. But he was acquitted of more serious charges of predatory sexual assault and first-degree rape.
The Oscar-winning producer and former Miramax boss was facing up to 29 years in prison but his lawyers asked the court for a more lenient jail term of five years, saying that anything more than 12 years would constitute a “life sentence.” Prosecutors reportedly asked the judge for the maximum sentence.
Weinstein’s attorneys have said they will appeal the verdicts.
Speaking earlier in the day at the sentencing hearing, Weinstein expressed remorse for his past actions but also said that the #MeToo movement has gone too far.
“I feel remorse for this situation. I feel it deep in my heart. I’m really trying to be a better person,” Weinstein said, according to USA Today.
But he also said that the #MeToo movement has deprived many people of due process under the law.
“I am totally confused,” he said according to a Variety report. “I think men are confused about all of this…this feeling of thousands of men and women who are losing due process, I’m worried about this country.”
Weinstein added: “This is not the right atmosphere in the United States of America.”
Multiple reports said that Weinstein was wheeled into the courthouse in a wheelchair.
Following his conviction on February 24, Weinstein was set to move to Rikers Island in New York. But the Shakespeare in Love producer reportedly experienced chest pains and was sent instead to Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan where he had a heart procedure. He has since been moved to the infirmary unit at Rikers Island.
“He’s miserable but trying to be optimistic as best he can,” Juda Engelmayer, a spokesman for Weinstein, recently told the New York Post. “He has had a lot of time to think about his life and be humbled, but he thinks it’s going to be a long, uphill battle from here.”
Weinstein has been accused by dozens of women of sexual misconduct, ranging from sexual harassment to rape. He still faces criminal charges in Los Angeles. No court dates have been announced for those cases.
Harvey Weinstein spent years courting favor from high-profile political figures, donating millions to Democrat lawmakers through the years.
Failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton received more money from Weinstein than any other Democrat, as the New York Post reported:
Federal Election Commission filings show the disgraced movie mogul bundled $1.4 million for Clinton during her presidential bid in 2016 and handed her another $73,390 dating back to her 1999 New York Senate seat run. […] The Miramax founder raised $72,100 for Obama but only bundled $679,000 for his 2012 reelection bid — half of what he raised for Clinton, the FEC data shows. […] The generous donor also made five-figure contributions to Democrat lawmakers such as Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, who replaced Clinton as the junior senator for New York, and Chuck Schumer, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Patrick Leahy of Vermont.
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