The New York Supreme Court has overturned the sex crime conviction of Harvey Weinstein, the powerful Hollywood producer whose downfall became symbolic of the #MeToo movement. The panel of judges, by four votes to three, ordered a new trial.
According to the ruling, written by Judge Jenny Rivera, the lower court erroneously admitted testimony from women whose allegations were not part of the indictments against the former film producer. “We reaffirm that no person accused of lawlessness may be tried on the basis of evidence of uncharged crimes which serves only to establish the accused’s propensity for criminal behavior,” she reads.