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Manhattan prosecutors will charge Weinstein with first- and third-degree rape in one case and a first-degree sex act in a second case, the source said.
Weinstein’s New York-based attorney, Benjamin Brafman, on Thursday declined to comment on whether his client would turn himself in.
The disgraced Hollywood producer is also under investigation for alleged sex crimes in Los Angeles and London. Federal prosecutors in New York have started a sex-crimes investigation involving him, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The charges follow a flood of accusations against Weinstein that led women around the world to come forward with accounts of being sexually harassed by powerful men. His accusers welcomed the news as a sign that the tables were finally turning — not only on him but on other accused predators.
“I, and so many of Harvey Weinstein’s survivors, had given up hope that our rapist would be held accountable by law. Twenty years ago, I swore that I would right this wrong. Today we are one step closer to justice,” said actress Rose McGowan, one of the first women to publicly accuse Weinstein of assault.
Dozens of accusations
Weinstein has been accused of rape, assault and other forms of sexual misconduct. Weinstein’s representative has said he sought treatment after the accusations and any allegations of nonconsensual sex were “unequivocally denied.”
Dozens of women have come forward publicly to accuse Weinstein of misconduct after reports in The New York Times and The New Yorker in 2017 about his treatment of women, including actresses with whom he worked.
The women said Weinstein threatened to ruin their careers if they went public with their accounts. On Thursday, New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor recounted in a tweet some of his threats and declared “not anymore.”
Movement gains steam
“That is super cathartic for a bunch of the survivors, or even survivors who are not necessarily victimized by him.”
CNN’s Frank Pallotta contributed to this report.
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