One of Harvey Weinstein's accusers broke down in tears and cursed on the witness stand on Friday as a defense lawyer questioned her account of the former Hollywood mogul forcing oral sex on her nearly two decades ago. "He was the one who raped me, not the other way around," Miriam Haley told jurors, per the AP. "That is for the jury to decide," Weinstein lawyer Jennifer Bonjean responded. "No, it's not for the jury to decide. It's my experience. And he did that to me," Haley said, using expletives as tears began streaming down her face. At that point, Judge Curtis Farber halted questioning and sent jurors on a break. Haley, her eyes red and face glistening, didn't look at Weinstein as she left the witness stand.
Haley, 48, was testifying for a fourth day at Weinstein's rape retrial. Questioning resumed after the break, with Haley composed but frustration sometimes flickering in her voice. By midafternoon, the judge grew impatient with contentious cross talk and extraneous comments from Haley and the attorney. Farber pounded his fist on the bench at one point and banged his gavel at another, telling them, "Let's behave, both of you." Farber later said it was the first time in 13 years that he'd used the gavel. Weinstein is charged with sexually assaulting Haley and another woman, Kaja Sokola, and raping a third, Jessica Mann. Mann and Sokola also are expected to testify. Weinstein denies the allegations. His lawyers argue that his accusers had consensual encounters with the then-powerful movie producer.
Haley, who has also gone by the name Mimi Haleyi, is the first accuser to testify at the retrial, which is taking place after an appeals court overturned Weinstein's conviction at an earlier trial. Haley's testimony at that 2020 trial took just one day. Haley alleges that Weinstein assaulted her after inviting her to stop by his apartment, testifying that Weinstein backed her into a bedroom and pushed her onto a bed, holding her down as she tried to get up and pleaded, "No, no—it's not going to happen." Weinstein, 73, listened on Friday with his hands pressed against his chin as Haley reiterated she never had romantic feelings for him and never wanted any sexual contact with him. The AP generally doesn't name people who allege they've been sexually assaulted, unless they give permission to be IDed. Haley, Mann, and Sokola have done so. More here.
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