Harvey Weinstein’s guilty verdict in New York was overturned, but there’s no way that happens here on the West Coast … according to the L.A. County D.A.’s Office, that is.
While many are questioning whether Weinstein’s L.A. conviction will hold up now that a NY appeals court tossed his conviction, the prosecutors who handled the case here in Cali aren’t worried one bit … telling TMZ its case was consistent with state law.
A rep for the D.A.’s office says California law allows “propensity evidence” in sexual assault cases subject to a judge’s discretion … and, the office used evidence of Weinstein’s sexual assaults in other jurisdictions to make its case — totally legal, according to them.
The D.A.’s office says it’s saddened by the appeal results in NYC … but, adds it’s sure his convictions in L.A. — for which Weinstein was sentenced to 16 years — will hold up under appellate scrutiny, and it intends for Weinstein to face consequences for his actions.
In fact, the office is so sure its conviction will stand, that even its leader, District Attorney George Gascón went on the record … telling the Los Angeles Times he’s totally comfortable with the conviction’s validity.
That said, the New York D.A.’s office probably felt pretty confident too until this morning … when the decision came down from the court of appeals to vacate Weinstein’s guilty verdict.
The appeals court concluded Weinstein ended up more on trial for other instances of alleged past behavior as opposed to specific crimes prosecutors charged him with … and concluded he needed a new jury to weigh in.
The Manhattan D.A.’s Office tells TMZ it plans to retry Weinstein … while his defense lawyer Jennifer Bonjean continues to work on his appeal in L.A.
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JB sat down with us on “TMZ Live” Thursday … arguing the L.A. decision’s gotta get overturned too because of the NYC outcome. It’s bound to be a long, rancorous battle.
