New York prosecutors announced Thursday that they are walking away from a rape charge against Harvey Weinstein rather than putting the former Hollywood power broker on trial for a fourth time in the landmark #MeToo case.
Despite the dropped charge, Weinstein is not a free man. He remains incarcerated and convicted of a separate sexual felony in New York, along with additional convictions in California. The rape charge in question had lingered unresolved after an appeals court threw out an earlier conviction and two subsequent retrials ended without a verdict. On Thursday, the judge formally dismissed the charge.
Weinstein showed no visible emotion as court officers wheeled him out of the courtroom. He has consistently denied all accusations against him.
The dropped charge stemmed from an allegation that Weinstein raped hairstylist and actor Jessica Mann inside a Manhattan hotel room in 2013. Mann testified that she also had a consensual, on-and-off relationship with Weinstein during that period, while he was married. However, she told jurors that she repeatedly tried to leave and refused any sexual contact as he cornered her in the room — that he demanded she undress, grabbed her arms, and continued until she felt too afraid to keep resisting.
Mann submitted a letter that a prosecutor read aloud in court. “After a lot of thought and reflection, I have chosen not to proceed with a fourth trial against Harvey Weinstein,” the letter stated. “It was clear to me at this last trial I could no longer endure going through this any longer.”
The trials took a significant toll on Mann, who is 40 years old. During the most recent proceeding, she spent five days on the witness stand and was questioned for the first time about a personal, diary-like note she wrote just two days after the alleged assault — a note that made no mention of the rape. At one point, she told the court she was having difficulty concentrating, causing proceedings to end early for the day.
Prosecutor Nicole Blumberg said Thursday that the prosecution team stands firmly behind Mann and praised her “bravery, strength, courage and inspiration” to other survivors. Given Mann’s expressed wishes about not continuing, Blumberg said “dismissal is appropriate.”
Weinstein, who is 74, also experienced health issues during the latest trial, reporting chest pains during jury deliberations, which led to another early adjournment.
Defense lawyer Jacob Kaplan argued after the dismissal that “the interests of justice would have never been to bring this case at all.”
Weinstein was once among the most influential figures in the film industry, producing celebrated and award-winning movies including “Shakespeare in Love,” “Pulp Fiction,” and “Chocolat.” That reputation collapsed in 2017 when a wave of sexual misconduct allegations became public, helping ignite the broader #MeToo movement and ultimately resulting in criminal charges.
He was first convicted of raping Mann in 2020, but an appeals court later overturned that verdict on grounds unrelated to her testimony. A 2025 retrial ended in a hung jury, and a second retrial this spring also resulted in deadlock.
The rape charge that was dismissed Thursday was a lower-level felony carrying a maximum sentence of four years — less time than Weinstein has already served. His other convictions in New York and California carry significantly longer sentences, including one related to the rape of an Italian actress in Los Angeles.
Weinstein did not take the stand at any of the trials, though he publicly complained following the 2025 New York retrial that the proceedings were unfair — a claim the judge rejected. His legal team has consistently argued that all of his accusers engaged in consensual relationships with him, motivated by career ambitions in the entertainment industry. Weinstein himself has stated he “acted wrongly, but I never assaulted anyone.”
The Associated Press has a policy of not identifying individuals who report sexual assault unless they choose to be identified publicly, as Mann has done.
