_ Harvey Weinstein is wheeled into New York court in handcuffs with a telltale tag on cuff of his new suit in first appearance since conviction was overturned

Harvey Weinstein has been seen for the first time since his 2020 conviction was overturned by an appeals court last week. 

The disgraced film mogul, 72, had his hands cuffed as he was pushed in a wheelchair out of a prison van and into a courthouse in Manhattan on Wednesday.

Weinstein, wearing a navy blue suit with the tag still visible on his sleeve, was jailed for 23 years for rape and sexual assault for the New York case.

But in a shocking turn the New York Court of Appeals ruled that the movie producer did not receive a fair trial when he was convicted - effectively erasing his 23-year prison sentence and ordering a retrial.

Last week's ruling concluded that a trial judge permitted jurors to see and hear too much evidence not directly related to the charges he faced. 

Prosecutors said they intend to retry him on charges that he forcibly performed oral sex on a TV and film production assistant in 2006 and raped an aspiring actor in 2013.

After his New York conviction was overturned he cried tears of joy and insisted he wasn't a rapist, his spokesman has said. 

Weinstein has been serving 23 years in a New York jail for the two sex attacks against aspiring actress Jessica Mann and production assistant Mimi Haleyi.

He was handed a further 16 years after a jury in LA found him guilty of three rape and sexual assault charges in 2022.

In a sign of how significant the case is, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg walked into court on Wednesday and sat in the second row of the public gallery.

Jessica Mann, who testified against Weinstein in the trial - he was convicted for third degree rape on her - was sitting on the same row as Bragg.

Prosecutor Nicole Blumberg told the court that they were asking for Weinstein to be remanded in custody.

They called it a 'Strong case in 2020 when the defendant was tried and convicted' and it 'remains a strong case in 2024.'

The court heard that the appeal ruling was 'non equivocal on the issue of consent' and there was 'nothing consensual about the conduct complainants described'.

Prosecutors told the court: 'We believe in this case and will be trying this case.'

'Jessica Mann is here in court. She's here to show she's not backing down and is committed to seeing justice is served again.

'The defendant may have power and privilege but she has the truth. We have every belief the defendant will be convicted again after trial.'

Prosecutors said that they wanted the trial to happen in the fall, possibly September.

Weinstein's lawyer Arthur Aidala told the court: 'We're not asking for bail. Mr Weinstein has very very serious medical issues'.

He praised the Department of Corrections for taking care of Weinstein's needs.

He said: 'He's sharp as a tack. He's as smart as he ever was. He's read hundreds and hundreds of books. I have no issue whatsoever about his mental abilities.'

Aidala dismissed the idea it was a 'strong case' and said that Weinstein was cleared of the most serious charges including first degree rape.

Aidala claimed that Mimi Haleyi, whose claims led to Weinstein being found guilty of criminal sexual act, may have perjured herself during the trial.

According to Aidala, Weinstein recently told him: 'Let's go to trial and prove my innocence.'

Judge Curtis Farber remanded Weinstein in custody and set a tentative trial date for after Labor day, meaning that it could be in September.

The next court date will be May 29th, the judge ruled.

As Weinstein was wheeled out - he was not in handcuffs or leg shackles - he shook hands with all of his legal team, one by one, and gave a thumbs up to his spokesman, who was sitting at the end of the row.

Mann stared directly at him.

During his four years in jail Weinstein has been beset by health issues including heart problems, mobility issues and diabetes.

Last week he was taken to Bellevue Hospital in New York where doctors conducted a slew of tests on him.

Attorney Arthur Aidala said Weinstein was moved to the hospital after his arrival on Friday into Rikers Island.

Aidala said: 'They examined him and sent him to Bellevue. It seems like he needs a lot of help, physically. He's got a lot of problems. He's getting all kinds of tests. He's somewhat of a train wreck health wise.'

'He was not treated well. They refused to give him even a sip of water, no food, no bathroom break,' Aidala said. 'He's a 72-year-old sickly man.' 

Weinstein was once the most powerful man in Hollywood who made hits like Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love with his film companies Miramax and The Weinstein Co.

He dominated Hollywood in the 1990s and won 81 Oscars as he became part of the world elite and grew especially close to Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Now The Weinstein Co. is bankrupt, his wife Georgina Chapman has divorced him and his empire is in ruins.

One of Weinstein's main accusers in the case, Mimi Haleyi, has said she is unsure if she is ready to testify again should the case be retried.

The reversal of his conviction is the second major #MeToo setback in the last two years, after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a Pennsylvania court decision to throw out Bill Cosby's sexual assault conviction.

Weinstein's conviction stood for more than four years, heralded by activists and advocates as a milestone achievement, but dissected just as quickly by his lawyers and, later, the Court of Appeals when it heard arguments on the matter in February.

New York State of Appeals Chief Judge Janet DiFiore ruled that Weinstein's appeal could proceed in 2022.

At the time, his lawyer Arthur Aidala argued that women who did not form part of the criminal allegations should not have been allowed to take the stand and testify about alleged sex abuse by his client.

He also alleged that one juror did not disclose they'd previously written a book on sexual predators, which he said should have disqualified them from serving.

Weinstein denied the charges against him and insisted that his relations with the women were consensual.

More than 80 women came forward to accuse the Oscar-winning producer of sexual assault and harassment.

The allegations first surfaced publicly in a New York Times story in 2017 detailing decades of alleged abuse.

Actresses Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd were among those who were named in the piece as accusers.

The allegations sparked a sea change in attitudes towards sexual misconduct in the workplace.

(Fluierul)