The judge presiding over Harvey Weinstein's rape trial declared a mistrial on Thursday, a day after the disgraced film producer was found guilty of one of two counts of sexual assault. "I declare a mistrial in the only case that remains pending," Judge Curtis Farber said during a hearing in Manhattan court. A jury in Manhattan criminal court convicted Weinstein on Wednesday of sexually assaulting former production assistant Miriam Healy in 2006 and acquitted him of a similar charge against former model Kaia Sokola. However, the jury did not reach a verdict on the 2013 rape of actress Jessica Mann. Jury deliberations in this case were marred by heated arguments. Farber said in a hearing "The deliberations have become so heated that I have to declare a mistrial" on rape charges, after the jury foreman reportedly said a jury member had threatened him. The jury foreman told the judge he could not continue after receiving the threats. After Weinstein's defense attorney, Arthur Aidala, asked for the trial to be canceled due to disagreements among the jurors, Weinstein himself addressed the court, saying, "We have heard threats, violence, and intimidation, and that is not good for me as someone who judges here." The former film producer, now 73, was previously convicted in 2020 to 23 years in prison for crimes related to Miriam Healy and Jessica Mann, in a high-profile trial that was considered a victory for the #MeToo movement at the time. But last year, the New York Court of Appeals overturned the entire trial because other victims testified during the trial and recounted assaults that Weinstein was not accused of. The trial has been rescheduled since mid-April in Manhattan Criminal Court. The trial also focused on the Sokola case, which is being heard for the first time before a criminal court.
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