Harvey Weinstein sued for sexual assault and battery in Los Angeles
A woman filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging that convicted rapist and former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein sexually assaulted her in a hotel bathroom in 2013.
The plaintiff, identified in the complaint as Jane Doe, is suing Weinstein and his now-defunct production company for sexual assault and battery. She was also a Jane Doe in a previous rape case against Weinstein, which resulted in a guilty verdict and a 16-year prison sentence.
The current lawsuit alleges that Weinstein sexually assaulted the plaintiff at the Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills after she met him there to discuss acting opportunities and review a script she was in the process of writing.
Harvey Weinstein was convicted of multiple charges of sexual assault and cleared of others, closing out a significant chapter in the #MeToo movement that saw the former Hollywood mogul’s career collapse under a wave of abuse allegations.
After having a drink at the hotel, Weinstein and another woman allegedly led the plaintiff to a suite, where the producer continued to talk about the script and suggested that the plaintiff consider hosting reality TV, according to the complaint. Weinstein then allegedly led the plaintiff into a bathroom, and the other woman allegedly closed the door behind the plaintiff, leaving her alone in the bathroom with the producer.
When Weinstein allegedly removed his clothes and “lightly rinsed himself” in the shower, the plaintiff attempted to “escape” — but Weinstein prevented her from exiting the bathroom and “trapped” her against a sink, according to the lawsuit.
While the plaintiff was still confined to the sink area, Weinstein allegedly “forcefully grabbed” the woman’s breast, “masturbated himself,” and “attempted to touch [the plaintiff] underneath her underwear and manually penetrate Plaintiff’s vagina” until he “ejaculated onto a towel on the floor.” The complaint alleges that Weinstein “did not stop the attack” despite the woman repeatedly saying, “No,” and “please don’t touch me.”
Harvey Weinstein gets 16 years in prison after his rape conviction in L.A. The sentence all but assures he’ll spend the rest of his life behind bars.
“The plaintiff remained in terror that ... Weinstein would hurt her more,” the lawsuit reads.
The Times has reached out to a representative for Weinstein, who is currently serving a 23-year prison sentence at Mohawk Correctional Facility in Rome, N.Y., according to Spectrum News 1. Weinstein has denied all allegations of sexual assault.
The woman is seeking unspecified punitive/exemplary damages, as well as damages to cover legal costs and further relief.
The plaintiff was named as Jane Doe No. 2 in a previous case in which Weinstein was convicted of raping an Italian model — identified as Jane Doe No. 1 — at a Beverly Hills hotel in 2013. The jury in that case either acquitted Weinstein or could not reach a verdict on charges he raped or assaulted three other women in Beverly Hills hotel rooms between 2004 and 2013.
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge declared a mistrial on the charges over which the jury was deadlocked in 2022, and Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascón said at the time that a decision had not been made about whether to retry Weinstein on those charges.
Times staff writers Stacy Perman, James Queally, Noah Goldberg and Richard Winton contributed to this report.
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