The judge in the second trial against Harvey Weinstein allowed Rowena Chiu, the ousted producer’s ex-assistant, to join the witnesses.
Posted at 5:24 p.m.
Although she alleged that she herself suffered sexual abuse at the hands of her former boss, Rowena Chiu will not testify in connection with the charges she has brought. Rather, she will be present as a supporting witness. Several women, the “#metoo witnesses” will have this important role during the trial against Harvey Weinstein, their stories serving to establish the repetitive aspect of the actions taken by the former producer.
Rowena Chiu claims to have met Weinstein twice before he tried to assault her during a business trip to the Venice Film Festival in 1998, while working for Miramax (a production company created by the Weinstein brothers ). She had managed to flee, then had hired a lawyer and finally signed an agreement with the company, in return for financial compensation. She had also added a clause to the agreement to protect other employees. In 2020, she broke her confidentiality agreement in an interview with variety.
Tuesday, during the trial, it was thus decided that the testimony of Rowena Chiu would be accepted in the proceedings. Harvey Weinstein faces 11 charges of rape and sexual assault involving five different women.