LONDON: Britain’s Queen Elizabeth has formally stripped Harvey Weinstein of his honorary award following his conviction for sexually assaulting a former production assistant and raping an actress.
“The Queen has directed that the appointment of Harvey Weinstein to be an Honorary Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated 29 January 2004, shall be cancelled and annulled,” according to an official announcement in the London Gazette said.
Weinstein, 68, is serving a 23-year prison term in New York state following his Feb. 24 conviction. He has appealed the conviction.
Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison in March following his sexual assault and rape conviction last month in a case hailed as a victory for the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct.
The sentence was handed down in Manhattan criminal court by Justice James Burke, who presided over Weinstein’s trial. A jury on Feb. 24 found Weinstein, 67, guilty of sexually assaulting former production assistant Mimi Haleyi and raping former aspiring actress Jessica Mann.
Once one of Hollywood’s most influential producers, Weinstein had faced the possibility of a maximum sentence of 29 years in prison.
More than 100 women, including famous actresses, have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct stretching back decades, fueling the #MeToo movement against sexual abuse and harassment. Weinstein has denied the allegations and said that any sex was consensual.
