The Daily

The Woman Defending Harvey Weinstein

Feb 7, 2020

In this engaging discussion, Donna Rotunno, lead defense lawyer for Harvey Weinstein and specialist in defending men accused of sex crimes, shares her insights with Megan Twohey, the investigative reporter who helped expose Weinstein’s alleged abuses. They delve into the intricacies of the legal strategies employed in the trial, the challenges of navigating consent, and the broader implications of the Me Too movement on due process. Rotunno highlights the psychological toll on both the accusers and those accused, providing a complex view of a profoundly impactful case.

31:58

Creator website

Episode guests

Megan Twohey

Donna Rotunno

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Intro

3min

Defending the Accused: Weinstein's Legal Strategy

7min

Navigating Me Too and Due Process

5min

Navigating Consent and Accountability

14min

Trial Updates and Political Reactions

5min

Note: This episode contains descriptions of sexual violence.

In the trial of Harvey Weinstein, six women have taken the stand, each making similar accusations of rape and sexual assault against the movie producer. Throughout their testimony, Weinstein’s defense lawyers have portrayed those encounters as consensual and suggested that in many cases it was the women who wanted something from Mr. Weinstein. His lawyers have seized on the fact that the two women whose accounts are at the center of the criminal charges in his New York trial agreed to have sex and friendly contact with Mr. Weinstein after they were allegedly victimized. Today, one of The Times reporters who broke the story of Mr. Weinstein’s alleged abuse more than two years ago speaks with Donna Rotunno, the lawyer behind Mr. Weinstein’s legal strategy.

Guests: Megan Twohey, an investigative reporter for The Times and co-author of “She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement," spoke with Donna Rotunno, Harvey Weinstein’s lead defense lawyer. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily.

Background reading:

Long before an avalanche of allegations against Mr. Weinstein set off a global reckoning over sexual harassment, Ms. Rotunno was steadily building a career as a criminal lawyer in Chicago with an unusual specialty: defending men accused of sex crimes.
Haven’t been following the trial? Here’s what’s happened so far.

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