Harvey Weinstein ’s retrial on sex crimes charges in Manhattan won’t start until at least next year — and his lawyers plan to hire a private investigator to look into a new allegation against the movie mogul that will now be part of the case. The new details came as Weinstein appeared in court Wednesday for a pretrial hearing. (Also Read: Harvey Weinstein diagnosed with bone marrow cancer, undergoing treatment in New York prison ) Weinstein was already facing retrial on two sex crimes charges after the state’s highest court overturned his 2020 conviction earlier this year.
In September, he was hit with a new charge accusing him of another assault. He has pleaded not guilty. On Wednesday, Judge Curtis Farber granted a prosecution request to consolidate both cases and agreed to push back the trial's start date, which had been tentatively scheduled for November 12.
Weinstein’s lawyers sought a date in March or April. Prosecutors said they were not opposed, but were prepared to go to trial as soon as January. Farber set the next pre-trial hearing for January 29, 2025.
“We’re going to need some time to investigate the case, hire a private investigator and dig more into discovery,” said Weinstein’s lawyer Arthur Aidala. Weinstein, seated in a wheelchair, held a copy of former US President Barack Obama’s memoir A Promised Land as he listened intently to the proceedings. Weinstein was convicted on charges that he forcibly performed oral sex on a TV and film produc.