Monday’s verdict in Harvey Weinstein’s New York rape trial will likely help Los Angeles County prosecutors secure a conviction against the disgraced movie mogul in his California case, legal analysts said.

“This is very bad news for Harvey Weinstein,” said USC law professor Susan Estrich, who has written extensively about sexual assault cases. “The defense Weinstein tried to use failed. And if it didn’t fly in New York for rape, it is not going to fly in California for sexual battery.”

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Stanford law professor Robert Weisberg, an expert in criminal law, said the decision was not a “rough compromise, but a pretty thoughtful verdict given the complexities of the evidence.”

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Stanford law professor Michele Dauber, who specializes in sexual violence law, said she was “obviously disappointed” that Weinstein was acquitted of the two most serious charges. But the verdict was still an “enormous victory for women and sexual assault victims,” she said, and showed that “ordinary Americans understand the severity and danger of sexual violence better than many members of the legal profession.”

Dauber was referring to New York prosecutors, who she says filed charges against Weinstein only under “irresistible pressure from the #MeToo movement.”

“The verdict was a sign that being white and powerful will not necessarily provide a get-out-of-jail-free card anymore when it comes to sexual violence,” Dauber said.

 

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