Another delay granted over bid to extradite Harvey Weinstein to Los Angeles
11 December 2020, 15:44
The disgraced movie mogul faces charges involving five women stemming from alleged assaults in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills from 2004 to 2013.
Convicted former film producer Harvey Weinstein will remain in a New York state prison for now after his lawyers and prosecutors agreed to postpone efforts to send him to California to face more sexual assault charges.
He appeared by video link from prison before Erie County Court Judge Kenneth Case, who, because of the pandemic, agreed to postpone the extradition hearing until April 9.
Seated at a table at the maximum security Wende Correctional Facility east of Buffalo, Weinstein spoke only briefly in response to a series of questions from the judge.
The disgraced movie mogul, wearing a polo shirt and face mask, waved his hand and shook his head in objection to media requests to record the proceeding, which the judge allowed.
Weinstein, 68, is serving a 23-year sentence after being convicted in New York City this year on charges of rape and sexual assault against two women.
He faces similar charges involving five women in California, stemming from alleged assaults in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills from 2004 to 2013.
Because Weinstein is imprisoned in New York, a judge must sign off on transferring him to the custody of LA authorities to be tried there.
His lawyer, Norman Effman, cited Weinstein’s “own very serious health concerns” in supporting the continued delay of the extradition proceedings originally scheduled for August.
Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office agreed to the first delay because of the pandemic.
Weinstein survived a bout of coronavirus in March at Wende Correctional Facility. His lawyers said he experienced symptoms of Covid-19 again in mid-November but did not test positive at that time.
