Convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein “displayed a staggering lack of empathy, treating others with disdain and inhumanity†and “consistently advanced his own sordid desires and fixations over the well-being of others†for decades, Manhattan prosecutors said in advance of his March 11 sentencing.
Their statement was part of a Friday letter to Justice James Burke in which they spell out Weinstein’s alleged past misdeeds, which range from sexual harassment and assault, as well as non-sexual physical abuse and threats, in the hopes of securing a lengthy sentence; some were previously reported, and others strongly echo other accusations.
The acts listed in this letter, prosecutors said, “show a lifetime of abuse towards others, sexual and otherwise†and because of this, “the People will ask the Court to impose a sentence that reflects the seriousness of defendant’s offenses, his total lack of remorse for the harm he has caused, and the need to deter him and others from engaging in further criminal conduct.â€
Weinstein, who was found guilty February 24 of third-degree rape and criminal sexual act in the first degree, faces five to 29 years in prison.
The prosecutors’ 11-page statement includes several notable details, including one alleged 1981 incident at a Manhattan hotel casting, where Weinstein allegedly told an aspiring actress that “everyone calls me Teddy Bear because I’m so big and cuddly and harmless’†before offering a sexual quid pro quo. In another incident, Weinstein threatened a Weinstein Company board member by saying “he would send someone to his office to cut off his genitals with a gardening shear.†He was also witnessed punching brother Bob Weinstein “so hard that he bled a great deal and was briefly unconscious†at a meeting. The prosecutors also cited Weinstein calling New York writer Rebecca Traister a “cunt†— and then roughing up her then-boyfriend after he intervened — as one of his “bad acts.â€
During Weinstein’s sentencing, prosecutors will go into further detail about what they think his sentence should be. He and his lawyers will also have the opportunity to make their own recommendation. The victims Weinstein was convicted of assaulting, former Project Runway production assistant Mimi Haleyi and ex-actress Jessica Mann, will also give the court their statements at his sentencing. It’s unclear whether they will speak, or if their statements will be read.