Harvey Weinstein Sentenced to 15 Years for Sexual Assault in New York

Author: Christine Savino

September 29, 2026

HRRC supports accountability for sexual violence and the right of survivors to seek justice through the rule-of-law. High-profile defendants should not be insulated from accountability because of their wealth, status, or influence, while the rights of the accused and the integrity of the judicial process must also be respected.

Harvey Weinstein [Image credit: David Shankbone/Wikimedia Commons]

Harvey Weinstein was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Wednesday for sexually assaulting former television production assistant Miriam Haley at his Manhattan apartment in 2006.

The sentence comes more than six years after his first New York conviction and follows an extraordinary sequence of reversal, retrials, and mistrials in one of the criminal cases most closely associated with the #MeToo movement.

Prosecutors had sought 20 years; his defense asked for nine years in total, including the more than six years he has already served.

“Today was about the survivors,” Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg said outside the courthouse.

He continued, “Ms. Haley, her remarks were powerful, moving, and eloquent. I thank her first and foremost, and all of the survivors who came to lend their support. I’m moved, as we should all be moved, by their courage and their steadfastness through what has obviously been a challenging process.”

Haley told the court that the assault had damaged her sense of security and that pursuing accountability had brought further trauma. During her victim impact statement, she described a “devastating effect on my life and sense of security that may never go away.”

Weinstein stated that he had “remorse for Miriam Haley’s pain” but maintained his innocence.

“You had it all,” Justice Curtis Farber told Weinstein. “But you threw it all away.”

Justice Farber added that Weinstein had failed to demonstrate the “self-reflection necessary for change.” After the sentence was imposed, Weinstein shook his head as he was wheeled from the courtroom while Haley and other accusers embraced in tears. Weinstein has indicated that he will appeal the conviction and sentence.

The sentencing resolves one part of a years-long New York prosecution. New York’s highest court overturned Weinstein’s 2020 convictions in 2024 after finding that the trial court improperly admitted testimony concerning uncharged alleged sexual acts and permitted overly prejudicial questioning about other alleged misconduct.

A jury then convicted Weinstein in June 2025 of first-degree criminal sexual act against Haley but acquitted him of a separate charge involving former model Kaja Sokola. Jurors also could not reach a verdict on a rape charge involving Jessica Mann. A second jury again deadlocked on the Mann charge in May 2026, and prosecutors dropped it the following month after Mann said she could not endure a fourth trial.

The sentencing marks the latest chapter in the landmark prosecution of Weinstein, whose downfall after sexual-misconduct allegations surfaced in 2017 helped propel the #MeToo movement to global prominence.

Sexual assault prosecutions can turn heavily on witness testimony, particularly where little contemporaneous forensic evidence, such as rape kit results, is available.

Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo urged the court to distinguish the offense before it from the broader allegations made against Weinstein, describing the individual cases as “incredibly nuanced, detailed, specific.”

He emphasized that Weinstein had been criminally convicted in two cases rather than the far larger number of allegations made against him, telling the judge, “It’s not dozens, it’s two.”

Agnifilo’s signature affable courtroom style was itself a feature of the case and has been for several of his other high-profile trials, from Sean “Diddy” Combs’s 2025 trial to Harvey Weinstein’s separate 2026 rape retrial.

Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg, a longtime Manhattan sex-crimes prosecutor known for a disciplined, victim-centered courtroom style, presented a stark contrast to the defense.

Arguing for a 20-year sentence, she said Weinstein had failed to accept responsibility for assaulting Haley despite being convicted twice by Manhattan juries.

“Despite being found guilty of that offense not once, but twice, by unanimous Manhattan juries, the defendant has never shown an ounce of remorse and refuses to accept responsibility,” Blumberg said. She argued that Weinstein had continued “public and unrelenting victim shaming” and told the court that he “doesn’t deserve a day less than his original sentence.”

Weinstein’s legal battles are also continuing in California. An appeals court upheld his separate 2022 rape and sexual assault convictions in June but vacated his 16-year sentence because the sentencing court had relied on New York convictions that were subsequently overturned. The case was remanded for resentencing.

Weinstein has also petitioned the California Supreme Court to review that judgment, which the court denied in September. California will ultimately determine whether any new sentence is served concurrently with or consecutively to the 15-year New York term.

---

Glossary

• Appeal — A request for a higher court to review a legal determination made by a lower court.

• Concurrent sentence — A sentence served at the same time as another sentence, rather than beginning only after the other sentence has been completed.

• Consecutive sentence — A sentence that begins after a previous sentence has been completed, increasing the total period of imprisonment.

• Contemporaneous  Taking place at the same time as another event.

• Criminal sexual act in the first degree — A former New York felony offense involving specified oral or anal sexual conduct under circumstances including forcible compulsion. The statute was repealed effective September 1, 2024, but continues to apply to offenses committed before that date, including Weinstein’s 2006 conduct.

• Forensic evidence — Physical, biological, or digital evidence collected through scientific methods to investigate and prove legal allegations.

• Resentencing — A new sentencing proceeding held after an earlier sentence has been vacated or otherwise requires reconsideration.

• Steadfastness — the characteristic of remaining firm in one’s belief

• Victim impact statement — A written or oral statement describing how a crime has affected a victim, which may be considered during sentencing or related proceedings.

---

References

1. Manhattan District Attorney's Office — D.A. Bragg Statement on Weinstein Sentencing — Official statement following Weinstein's September 23, 2026 sentencing, including the prosecution's requested sentence and comments concerning Miriam Haley and other survivors.

2. New York Court of Appeals — People v. Weinstein (2024) — The New York Court of Appeals decision overturning Weinstein's earlier conviction and ordering a new trial.

3. New York Courts — Victim Impact Statements — Information explaining the purpose and use of victim impact statements in New York criminal proceedings.

4. New York Courts — Sentencing — Overview of sentencing procedures and forms of criminal punishment in New York.

5. RAINN — National Sexual Assault Hotline — Free, confidential, 24/7 support and referrals for survivors of sexual violence and their loved ones.