I hold no brief for Harvey Weinstein. Although he’s already been convicted in the “Court of Public Opinion,” he does deserve something resembling a fair trial in a court of law. It hasn’t started off too well for him. He arrived at the Manhattan court house Monday morning for a hearing, navigating through a carnival atmosphere of accusers and protestors with a gaggle of signs reading “Justice for Survivors” and “Coercion is Not Consent.” With jury selection to start on Tuesday, the impact of such familiar impediments to a fair trial is worrisome.

Then, just as the trial was about to start, in which Weinstein is charged with the most egregious sexual offenses, something happened that I’ve never seen before in any criminal proceeding. The Los Angeles County District Attorney, Jackie Lacey, announced that her office had filed new criminal charges against Weinstein for forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by the use of force and sexual battery by restraint.

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