NEW YORK — One in every of Harvey Weinstein ‘s accusers broke down in tears and cursed on the witness stand Friday as a protection lawyer questioned her account of the previous Hollywood mogul forcing oral intercourse on her practically twenty years in the past.
“He was the one who raped me, not the opposite means round,” Miriam Haley advised jurors.
“That’s for the jury to resolve,” Weinstein lawyer Jennifer Bonjean responded.
“No, it is not for the jury to resolve. It is my expertise. And he did that to me,” Haley mentioned, utilizing expletives as tears started streaming down her face.
Choose Curtis Farber halted questioning and despatched jurors on a break. Haley, her eyes crimson and face glistening, didn’t have a look at Weinstein as she left the witness stand.
Haley, 48, was testifying for a fourth day at Weinstein’s rape trial. Questioning resumed after the break, with Haley composed however occasional sparkles of frustration in her voice.
Bonjean continued to press her about specifics she did and didn’t recall from the alleged July 2006 assault and about its aftermath, together with a time a few weeks later when Haley has mentioned she had intercourse with Weinstein that she did not need however did not battle.
“You did not say, ‘Like, hey, what you probably did to me the opposite night time wasn’t cool?'” Bonjean requested.
“No,” mentioned Haley, reiterating that she “went numb” throughout the lodge encounter.
Weinstein is charged with sexually assaulting Haley and one other lady and raping a 3rd. He denies the allegations and his attorneys argue that his accusers had consensual encounters with a then-powerful film producer who might advance their careers.
Haley, who has additionally passed by the title Mimi Haleyi, is the primary accuser to testify on the retrial, which is going on after an appeals courtroom overturned Weinstein’s conviction at an earlier trial. Haley’s testimony at that 2020 trial took simply someday.
Haley alleges that Weinstein assaulted her after inviting her to his house to, as she put it, “simply cease by and say hello.” She had labored briefly as a manufacturing assistant on the Weinstein-produced TV present “Mission Runway,” and his firm had booked her a flight to Los Angeles the subsequent day attend a film premiere.
She testified earlier within the week that Weinstein backed her right into a bed room and pushed her onto a mattress, holding her down as she tried to rise up and pleaded: “No, no – it is not going to occur.”
Haley and two of her pals testified that she advised them quickly after that Weinstein had sexually assaulted her. She maintains she was by no means desirous about any sexual or romantic relationship with Weinstein, regardless of his previous overtures, however needed his assist getting jobs in present enterprise.
Zeroing in on the alleged assault, Bonjean on Friday questioned why Haley would comply with go to Weinstein’s house after what the witness described as earlier “weird” and “overwhelming” conduct, together with his barging into her dwelling weeks earlier as he sought to influence her to go to Paris with him.
Haley mentioned she did not have a purpose to show down Weinstein’s request to cease by his house, thought it might be rude to refuse, and did not concern for her security, even after his earlier conduct.
Haley grew emotional as Bonjean requested simply how Haley’s garments got here off earlier than Weinstein allegedly yanked out a tampon and carried out oral intercourse on her. Haley mentioned Weinstein took off her clothes, however she did not recall the main points: “I used to be, you understand, busy struggling,” she defined.
“You eliminated your garments, proper?” Bonjean quickly requested, resulting in the fractious and tearful alternate.
Earlier, Bonjean had targeted on Haley’s journey to Los Angeles on the expense of Weinstein’s then-company. “Did you simply assume he was simply being beneficiant?” the protection lawyer requested.
Haley mentioned she accepted partly as a result of she needed to “get again in his good books” after turning down the sooner invitation to Paris, and the Los Angeles journey appeared extra acceptable as a result of she’d be touring on her personal and will additionally go to a pal there.
“You needed to appease him, make him joyful, make him such as you?” Bonjean requested.
“Properly, that, too,” Haley mentioned.
Weinstein’s retrial consists of fees associated to Haley and one other accuser from the unique trial, Jessica Mann, who alleges a 2013 rape. He is additionally being tried, for the primary time, for allegedly forcing oral intercourse on former mannequin Kaja Sokola in 2006.
Mann and Sokola are also anticipated to testify.
The Related Press typically doesn’t title individuals who allege they’ve been sexually assaulted except they provide permission for his or her names for use. Haley, Mann and Sokola have finished so.
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