CA Gov says he's 'incredibly proud of his wife' as jury failed to find Weinstein guilty of her rape

The California governor said he was 'incredibly proud' of his wife for speaking out against disgraced movie producer Harvey Weinstein, 70, after a jury failed to find him guilty of raping her. 

Gavin Newsom, 55, released a statement on Monday, encouraging others to 'keep fighting to ensure that survivors are supported and that their voices are heard,' after the jury was unable to reach a decision on the counts involving his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom, 48. 

'I am so incredibly proud of my wife and all the brave women who came forward to share their truth and uplift countless survivors who cannot,' he said. 'Their strength, courage and conviction is a powerful example and inspiration to all of us.'

Siebel Newsom accused Weinstein of luring her into his Beverly Hills hotel room and raping her with his 'distorted fish-like' genitals in 2005. She gave an emotional testimony in November, then was accused by Weinstein's lawyers of putting on a 'theatrical, overly dramatized performance.' 

The jury was also unable to come to a decision on model Lauren Young's counts, forcing jurists to declare a mistrial on those counts. 

Gavin Newsom, 55, celebrated his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom's bravery for testifying against disgraced movie producer, Harvey Weinstein, 70. 'I am so incredibly proud of my wife and all the brave women who came forward to share their truth and uplift countless survivors who cannot,' he said

Siebel Newsom (pictured in a court sketch) emotionally testified in November, accusing Weinstein of of luring her into his Beverly Hills hotel room and raping her with his 'distorted fish-like' genitals in 2005. His defense called her testimony a ' theatrical' performance

'Jane Doe #4 [Siebel Newsom] cannot square in her mind the idea that she’s a successful, well educated, well-bred refined woman who had consensual sex with Harvey Weinstein in exchange for opportunity and access,' Attorney Alan Jackson said during closing arguments on December 1. 

A jury of eight men and four women found Weinstein guilty of one count of rape and two counts of sexual assault in a Los Angeles court on Monday, and he now faces an additional 18 to 24 years in state prison, in addition to his current sentence in New York. The frail movie producer is only two years into his 23-year conviction for rape and sexual assault in New York. 

The disgraced mogul - whose crimes spawned the growth of the #MeToo movement in 2017 - was also acquitted of a sexual battery allegation made by another woman, an unnamed massage therapist who treated Weinstein at a hotel in 2010, known as Jane Doe 3. 

Weinstein, bound to a wheelchair for the proceedings, did not audibly react but he folded his hands and pressed them to his head as the guilty verdicts were read.

The verdicts were reached after jurors deliberated for three weeks, meeting for a total of 41 hours over ten days.

Weinstein was found guilty of one count of rape and two counts of sexual assault in a Los Angeles court on Monday and faces an additional 18 to 24 years in state prison, in addition to his current sentence in New York

The frail movie producer is only two years into his 23-year conviction for rape and sexual assault in New York

Siebel Newsom also released a statement following the verdict, writing: 'Harvey Weinstein will never be able to rape another woman. He will spend the rest of his life behind bars where he belongs.

'Harvey Weinstein is a serial predator and what he did was rape.' 

She also accused Weinstein's defense team of using 'sexism, misogyny, and bullying tactics to intimidate, demean, and ridicule us survivors.' 

'To all the survivors out there - I see you, I hear you, and I stand with you,' she wrote in her statement. 

In mid-November, Siebel Newsom testified that she had found herself unexpectedly alone with Weinstein in a suite at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills in 2005, where she had agreed to join him for a meeting. She said she assumed others would be present and they would talk about her career.

He emerged from the bathroom in a robe, wearing nothing underneath, and began groping her while he masturbated. Siebel Newsom said she faked an orgasm to end the ordeal.

'I was making some noises to get him to finish, he had already raped me.' 

Defense Attorney Mark Werksman asked her how she 'indicated her pleasure,' resulting in a visibly appalled Siebel Newsom.

She responded: 'This is not When Harry Met Sally. I'm not doing that.'

Siebel Newsom released a statement following the verdict, calling Weinstein a 'serial predator' and accusing his lawyers of using 'sexism, misogyny, and bullying tactics to intimidate, demean, and ridicule us survivors' 

The remaining accusers include the unidentified Russian-Italy-based model, labeled Jane Doe 1, who claims she was sexually assaulted by Weinstein in 2013, and forced to perform oral sex as he had difficulty maintaining an erection.

The unidentified Russian was the first witness called to the stand. She claimed she was sexually assaulted by Weinstein in 2013, and forced to perform oral sex as he had difficulty maintaining an erection.

Known in court as Jane Doe 1, she faced a heated line of questioning from Weinstein's legal team in October, with the defense accusing her of lying — arguing that at the time of the incident, Weinstein's testicles had been surgically relocated to his inner thighs.

Jane Doe 1 said the attack took place in Los Angeles at an Italian film festival, during which Weinstein arrived uninvited at her hotel room in February 2013 and raped her. The attack, during which Weinstein also penetrated her with a foreign object, led to mental anguish and abuse of alcohol, she said.

'I was destroying myself,' she testified early on during proceedings, while fighting back tears. 'I was feeling very guilty. Most of all because I opened that door.'

She added that she has been the victim of rape in the past and feared being beaten if she didn't follow Weinstein's demands for sex.

Weinstein was drawn sitting in a wheelchair throughout his trial 

Weinstein was found guilty of rape and sexual assault on all counts related to Jane Doe 1.

The allegations made by the other three women, whose alleged attacks almost all happened before the one involving Jane Doe 1, lacked any forensic evidence or eyewitness accounts and so the charges hinged heavily on the stories and credibility of the accusers.

In the case of 29-year-old Young - who claimed that during a 2013 meeting with the mogul about a script, he trapped her in the bathroom of his Beverly Hills hotel, groped her, and masturbated in front of her - that was not enough, with jurors remaining hung on her charges of sexual battery by restraint.

The alleged incident transpired shortly after the alleged 2013 rape of Jane Doe 1, according to the model, who became acquainted with Weinstein while pursuing a career in acting and screenwriting.

She was the only one of the four accusers to tell her story at both trials, in Los Angeles and New York.

Jurors were also unable to reach a verdict involving model Lauren Young, called Jane Doe 2 in proceeding, who alleged that during a 2013 meeting with Weinstein about a script, he trapped her in the bathroom of his Beverly Hills hotel, groped her, and masturbated in front of her

'I was scared of Harvey Weinstein - that he would hurt me, or send someone to hurt me, or ruin my career, or make my life hell,' Young said during an emotional testimony this month

'I was scared of Harvey Weinstein - that he would hurt me, or send someone to hurt me, or ruin my career, or make my life hell,' Young said during an emotional testimony earlier this month.

Weinstein's attorneys denied the encounter ever occurred, and said there was no evidence she was forced to remain in the room.

A third accuser, a massage therapist known as Jane Doe 3, was hired by Weinstein in May of 2010 for a massage, during which she said he trapped her in a hotel bathroom, groped her, and masturbated in front of her, in an incident eerily similar to the one recounted by Young.

Tearing up at the stand, the masseuse said she was 'young and naïve' when Weinstein allegedly abused her, and felt like she couldn't confide the ordeal to the authorities or her fiancé — but eventually told another of her A-List clients, Mel Gibson, after he indicated he'd be working with Weinstein.

She expressed shame and disgust that she agreed to see and work with Weinstein again afterward, something the defense attempted to hone in on during cross-examinations.

'That's one of the reasons why I didn't want to come forward, because this is embarrassing,' she told the court in defiance of the defense's claims concerning supposed inconsistencies.

'He went toward me in a very aggressive manner. He pushed me against the wall. That’s when he started to put his hand under my bra and feel my chest.'

She added: 'I was terrified, I thought I was about to get raped.'

Weinstein is expected to appear for his sentencing in the new year.