NY grand jury weighs new evidence against Harvey Weinstein, source says

Harvey Weinstein could be indicted by a grand jury in New York this week on more sexual misconduct allegations, a source said Wednesday.

A source with knowledge of the case told NBC News that a grand jury has been convened in New York to consider whether to bring new charges against the disgraced former movie mogul, and a decision could be made as early as Friday, he said.

Weinstein’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, said in a statement Wednesday: “We will be prepared for whatever comes our way, they will do everything in their power to ensure Harvey never sees the light of day.”

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office declined to comment in an email to NBC News.

Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction was overturned in April by the New York Court of Appeals. The court ruled 4-3 that the trial judge should not have allowed certain witnesses to testify because their allegations were not part of the charges against him.

The prosecution announced in July that it would retry Weinstein on the original charges from the 2020 trial, but that it would also question other alleged victims.

A few weeks later, Judge Curtis Farber set a trial date for November 12. A source with knowledge of the case said any new charges would likely be consolidated into a single trial.

Weinstein, who was originally sentenced to 23 years in prison for forcibly performing oral sex on a former TV and film production assistant in 2006 and third-degree rape for an attack on another woman in 2013, is serving a sentence in New York’s Rikers Island jail complex ahead of a 2022 sentencing in a separate rape case in Los Angeles.

Weinstein’s legal team is appealing the conviction and 16-year prison sentence.

In total, more than 80 women have accused the Oscar-winning producer of sexual assault or harassment. The allegations, first reported by The New York Times and The New Yorker, sparked the #MeToo movement, in which powerful Hollywood men were called out for alleged abuses of power.

Weinstein has maintained that all sexual encounters were consensual.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.