CNN —
When Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein was found guilty of two sex crimes in February 2020, the conviction was hailed as a landmark moment in the #MeToo movement.
Now, over four years later, the ruling from the New York Court of Appeals overturning that conviction has sent shockwaves through communities of sexual assault survivors, particularly the more than 100 women who have accused Weinstein of assault and harassment.
“This today is an act of institutional betrayal,” actor and activist Ashley Judd, who was among the first women to publicly accuse Weinstein of sexual harassment, said a UN event for workplace safety. “Our institutions betray survivors of male sexual violence.”
Accusers who spoke with CNN on Thursday echoed Judd’s frustration with the appeals court’s decision. Some expressed gratitude that Weinstein was convicted and sentenced to a lengthy prison term in a Los Angeles courtroom on similar charges.
“This is a very sad day for countless women who suffered at the hands of a serial predator,” said Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the wife of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who accused Weinstein of rape and testified in the Los Angeles trial.
“Harvey Weinstein is a serial predator and rapist,” she said. “The bravery of the women who came forward ensures that regardless of what happens in New York, Weinstein will die in prison.”
Weinstein, 72, has maintained his innocence and denied any nonconsensual sexual activity.
He was convicted in 2020 in New York of first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape, and he was sentenced to 23 years in prison. However, the state court of appeals overturned that conviction Thursday and ordered a new trial, stating that the use of “prior bad acts” witnesses should not have been allowed.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said it plans to retry the case. “We will do everything in our power to retry this case, and remain steadfast in our commitment to survivors of sexual assault,” said office spokesperson Emily Tuttle.
Weinstein’s attorney Arthur Aidala said his client will be ready for a retrial “on the first day we walk into that courtroom.”
In addition, last year, in a case out of Los Angeles, Weinstein was sentenced to 16 years in prison after being convicted of rape and sexual assault. That case has also been appealed.
Here’s a look at how some of his accusers have reacted to the decision.
‘Disheartening’ and ‘profoundly unjust’The Silence Breakers, a group of Weinstein accusers, called the news “disheartening” and “profoundly unjust.” The group said when sexual assault survivors broke their silence in 2017, “the world changed,” adding that Weinstein’s ruling “does not diminish the validity of our experiences or our truth; it’s merely a setback.”
Elizabeth Fegan, an attorney who represented several women in the sexual abuse cases brought against Weinstein, including Siebel Newson, said, “Some thought the L.A. case to be superfluous in light of the NY verdict, but now we realize how important it was.”
“The California survivors stepped into the line of fire, putting themselves through enormous emotional pain reliving the sexual abuse they suffered at the hands of Weinstein,” Fegan said. “They were adamant that regardless of the New York verdict on appeal the prosecutors in California should pursue charges to ensure Weinstein stayed behind bars.”
Ambra Battilana Gutierrez, an activist and model who was one of the first women to accuse Weinstein of wrongdoing, said the ruling was another example of the “ongoing failure of the justice system – and the courts – to take survivors seriously and to protect our interests.” She said she and other survivors expect Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to “pursue Weinstein now.”
In 2015, Gutierrez filed a sexual abuse complaint with the New York Police Department against Weinstein, stating that he groped her during a meeting. The next day, the NYPD’s Special Victims Division asked her to wear a recording device and talk to him again, and in the recording, Weinstein made potentially incriminating comments to Gutierrez, apologizing for touching her breast.
Despite the recording, New York prosecutors cited a lack of evidence in the case and declined to prosecute. Gutierrez later reached an undisclosed settlement with Weinstein.
Dawn Dunning, who testified as a “prior bad acts” witness in Weinstein’s New York trial, said she was “stunned that the court threw out Weinstein’s conviction on legal technicalities.” Still, she said she was proud that she testified and “confronted that convicted rapist.”
“Preparing for the trial took two years of my life. I had to relive the trauma of the assault every day. But since today’s ruling, people have asked me if I regret having testified,” Dunning said. “And my answer is a resounding, ‘No.’
“I came forward to support other women who were also sexually abused by Weinstein and to ensure that he would be held accountable. I had nothing to gain, and much to lose in terms of loss of privacy and the trauma that comes with confronting one’s abuser in court. I am a stronger person for having done so, and I know that other women found strength and courage because I and other Weinstein survivors confronted him publicly. The culture has changed, and I am confident that there is no going back,” she said.
