It’s been almost three years, but it’s finally happened. Media mogul Harvey Weinstein is now guilty of sexual assault at his misconduct trial in Manhattan.
With a look of defiance in their eyes, the legal team of the disgraced Harvey Weinstein escorted him into the courtroom in Manhattan. Only he is not found not guilty. Instead, they hear the words they didn’t expect, “We find the defendant guilty on a charge of a criminal sex act in the first agree and rape in the third degree.” While it might end the media mogul’s fall from grace, it is no blow for his lawyer, Donna Rotunno.
Rotunno, who has made a career of defending men accused of sexual assault, mentioned her client took the verdict “like a man” and does not see himself as guilty. She concluded Weinstein would appeal the decision made by the jury.
New York District Attorney Cyrus Vance Junior applauded the victims. He said in a statement via the Guardian:
Weinstein, with his manipulation, his resources, his attorneys, his publicists, and his spies did everything he could to silence the survivors. But they wouldn’t be silenced, spoke from their hearts and were heard.
Exit Stage Right, Harvey Weinstein Because You’re Guilty
When you’re producing Oscar-worthy films, you consider yourself unstoppable and untouchable. Harvey Weinstein thought his victims would sit back and remain silent. He didn’t realise his crimes would return to bite him on the ass.
Many people came out with stories of being sexually abused by industry big guns. The #MeToo Movement has helped unearth the abusers and given their victims the voices they didn’t have before. One abuser is Academy Award-winning actor Kevin Spacey. The allegations against him surfaced when Star Trek Discovery star Anthony Rapp revealed the House of Cards actor had assaulted him when he was fourteen.
As a blogger, it’s so good to write about good news rather than the horrible things Weinstein’s legal team have accused all ninety of his victims of. Donna Rotunno has accused all the women who have made accusations of being liars. According to her, they fed off her client’s fame and had consensual sex with him to push their own careers forward.
There is no knowing where this woman gets her beliefs. She’s pro-man but claims to be a feminist. Defending a man with over ninety victims and labelling him as the one in the right is not an act of feminism.
With the guilty verdict, it’s safe to say Weinstein’s reputation is down in the negative range, so it should be. He manipulated his victims and threatened to ruin their careers if they didn’t join his ‘casting couch’.
Run, Rotunno, Run
Donna Rotunno is a powerhouse as a lawyer but is NOT the feminist she claims to be. She said claims the victims asked to be assaulted. When asked if she had been sexually harassed, she commented she had never put herself in a dangerous situation for her to be raped or assaulted.
Ah, Weinstein threatened and intimidated his victims, putting them in a dangerous situation. This woman has zero shame. What if she had a female relative who was sexually assaulted and was told to keep it to herself? How would she feel when she found out? Given her morals, probably not. She would likely say, “It was your fault you were there, and it’s your fault this happened to you.”
Social media has an intense hatred for the woman defending the man who thought many of his targets were threats to his reputation. Truth is, Rotunno should be the one to panic and run. Why? Well, it comes down to what the silence breakers do next. If assaulted, she’d be harmonising a very different tune.
The Silence Breakers Don’t Owe Weinstein
Weinstein genuinely believes his victims owe him their careers. Los Angeles Magazine alleges so-called friends say the Silence Breakers are in debt to the media mogul. Also, model Gigi Hadid had to pull out of being a juror due to her close connection to one of the victims.
In this same article, which was published two months before the trial began in November 2019, a ‘friend’ of the disgraced film producer claims they were told Harvey would fight the charges – as he said the women who are claiming he assaulted them owe him for their careers and wants an apology.
Ah, they don’t owe him. Why would over ninety women claim the same abuse if it wasn’t true? It’s not like there was a group meeting where they plotted to ruin him. It doesn’t work that way. He assaulted them and told them to keep quiet; otherwise, he’d ruin their careers.
Every woman involved with the case knew he would plead not guilty. He thinks he wouldn’t get in trouble because he’s an influential figure if his misdeeds got out.
Moving On
Weinstein’s second wife, Georgina Chapman, who he’d been married to for ten years and is mother to two of his five children, announced she was leaving him after the scandal broke. As a result, she took their daughter and son with her. Her fashion label, Marchesa, suffered because of Ms Chapman’s association with the disgraced mogul. She had zero clue her husband was committing heinous acts.
Weinstein allegedly forced actresses to wear his wife’s brand on the red carpet. Many female celebrities boycotted the brand until Scarlett Johansson broke the avoidance by wearing a custom-made Marchesa gown to the 2018 Met Gala.
The media also alleged that Chapman is now dating Adrien Brody.
In the same article, it’s claimed when the 2017 scandal hit, Weinstein was quoted saying his wife “stood 100 per cent behind him”. Little did he realise how wrong he was, and she ended up leaving him and taking their children. This statement alone shows how selfish and egomaniacal of a man Weinstein is. He treats women like they’re trash that he can dispose of when he’s done with them.
The 60 Minutes Australia Story
On February 23, 2020, 60 Minutes Australia aired a story about the trial. It featured actress Rose McGowan, model Ambra Gutierrez and his head lawyer, Donna Rotunno.
According to McGowan, the spy organisation Black Cube went after her to silence her in coming out about Weinstein raping her. It’s evident in the story that she was not the only woman targeted by the group. The media mogul hired the organisation to gather intel on his victims and to uncover information that could slander them if they ever tried to speak out against him.
Reporter Tom Steinfort spoke to a spy who worked for the organisation to gather Intel on the actresses Weinstein deemed a threat to his reputation.
