Between court appearances related to his various alleged violent sex crimes, Harvey Weinstein has taken on a curious new side-gig. According to his attorney, Ben Brafman, the disgraced movie mogul is also working as a paralegal on his own case—which has thus far resulted in two indictments on charges like rape and criminal sexual acts.
Brafman made the revelation during a press conference that followed Weinsteins latest hearing on Monday, during which his client pleaded not guilty to three new charges—including predatory sexual assault and a criminal sexual act. The predatory sexual assault charges in particular carries a minimum sentence of 10 years, and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. The charges stem from an indictment that Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. issued on July 2.
Weinsteins hearing took place at the Manhattan State Supreme Court on Monday morning. It was his most recent court appearance since June 5, when he pleaded not guilty to two previous rape charges and one charge of a criminal sexual act.
Weinstein arrived about 30 minutes before the hearing began—entering the courtroom in handcuffs shortly before 9:30 A.M., flanked by bailiffs and his legal team. The room was mostly full, with reporters and representatives of both legal teams taking up the majority of the benches. Also in attendance, once again, was star attorney Gloria Allred, who is representing one of Weinsteins unnamed accusers. Prior to the hearing, Brafman walked across the bench to greet Allred with a brisk handshake.
At the start of the hearing, attorney Joan Illuzzi-Orbon, representing the Manhattan District Attorneys office, requested that Weinstein be restricted to living in Manhattan while on bail—rather than going back and forth to his Connecticut home, which was recently sold. (Per Brafman, Weinstein has an arrangement that allows him to stay at the home until February 2019.) Brafman pushed back on Illuzzi-Orbons request, saying his client has no residence in New York, and that it would be “ludicrous” to force him to stay in the city thanks to the frenzied media coverage of Weinsteins case. He also noted that Weinstein is trying to maintain some semblance of a career. During the press conference after the hearing, Brafman elaborated on that, saying that Weinstein still occasionally reads scripts for potential projects and hopes to get back into moviemaking. He also noted Weinsteins new side career as a paralegal.
Towards the end of the hearing, both teams signed orders of protection for the unnamed accusers, with the judge reminding Weinstein that he may not contact them in any way whatsoever. Weinstein was a largely silent figure during the hearing, save for when it came time for him to leave. As he walked toward the door, he began fumbling with his pockets, murmuring that he thought he forgot his wallet. In a conclusion not unlike some grim version of Curb Your Enthusiasm, Brafman eventually assured Weinstein that he did have his wallet, and that they could leave the room.
Weinsteins next scheduled court appearance is September 20.
Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Yohana DestaYohana Desta is a Hollywood writer for VanityFair.com.
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