Deadlocked Jury Throws Harvey Weinstein Retrial Into Chaos After Partial Verdict

A New York jury on Wednesday delivered a mixed verdict in Harvey Weinstein’s sexual assault retrial, finding the former Hollywood mogul guilty of one count while acquitting him of another.

The jury found Weinstein guilty of forcibly performing oral sex on former “Project Runway” production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006, but acquitted him of criminal sexual assault against former model Kaja Sokola.

They remain deadlocked on third-degree rape charges related to actress Jessica Mann, who testified that Weinstein had raped her in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013.

Since the trial began last week, the jurors have been contentious with one another. The judge even ordered them to pause deliberations and “cool down” earlier on Wednesday, per The New York Times.

Justice Curtis Farber was informed in the courtroom that jurors were indeed “yelling and screaming” at each other throughout the day, and that one juror threatened the jury’s foreman, “I’ll see you outside one day.”

Photo by Curtis Means-Pool via Getty Images.

Weinstein attempted to capitalize on the situation, arguing to Justice Farber that the jury conflict was grounds for a mistrial.

“This is not right for me, for me the person on trial here,” Weinstein told the judge. “This is my life on the line, and you know what, it’s not fair. It’s simple. It’s not fair.”

“It’s time, it’s time, it’s time to say this trial is over,” the former Hollywood mogul said.

Farber denied Weinstein’s request: “Jurors fight. They act childish at times. They get heated. I’m not going to allow any injustice to happen to you.”

This retrial followed the New York State Court of Appeals overturning Weinstein’s 2020 conviction, which had become a defining case of the #MeToo movement.

“If this person wasn’t Harvey Weinstein, would we even be here?” Weinstein’s attorney, Arthur Aidala, asked during closing arguments, maintaining the encounters were “transactional” and “consensual.” On June 5, Weinstein told FOX 5 New York that he acted “immorally” but insisted, “never illegal, never criminal, never anything.”

Over the past six weeks, three accusers testified: former “Project Runway” production assistant Miriam Haley, actress Jessica Mann, and former model Kaja Sokola from Poland. Weinstein, 73, pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Michael M. Santiago via Getty Images.

The partial verdict came as a shock, as Farber had only assembled the jury to formally send them home for the day when the foreman suddenly announced decisions on two of the three charges.

Jurors were unable to reach a verdict on the third charge and will continue deliberating on Thursday.

Regardless of the outcome, the 73-year-old former producer, who has been diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia, will likely return to California, where he’s serving a 16-year sentence for a separate 2022 rape conviction.

Weinstein’s lawyers filed an appeal for his 2022 conviction last year, which is still in process, per NBC.

Judge Farber instructed the jury to continue deliberations on Thursday regarding the remaining charge related to Sokola’s allegations.