Harvey Weinstein on Tuesday filed an appeal of his rape and sexual assault conviction with New York’s highest court, claiming the judge who oversaw his case scapegoated him got “centuries of male misbehavior.”
Weinstein, 70, — who is awaiting sentencing in Los Angeles after being found guilty of rape and sexual assault at trial there — asked the New York Court of Appeals to overturn his 2020 conviction and grant him a new trial in the state.
The disgraced Hollywood producer argued he was the victim of misguided rulings by the judge at his Manhattan trial, James Burke, who sentenced him to 23 years in prison in March 2020.
The then-judge succumbed “to the pressure of an influential social movement determined to punish centuries of male misbehavior by setting an example in convicting one man,” the appeal papers allege, in an apparent reference to the #MeToo movement.
Weinstein argued that it was unfair that jurors were allowed to hear testimony from four women accusing him of sexual misconduct for which he wasn’t charged.
The fallen movie mogul also claims one juror should have been disqualified for withholding the fact that she wrote a book about three young women and their predatory relationships with older men.
Weinstein lawyer Arthur Aidala told The Post: “We will ask the Court of Appeals to remind trial courts throughout the state that a defendant cannot be tried based on his character – but must be tried based on the conduct for which he has been accused.
“The trial judge disregarded basic rules of NY law and allowed into evidence acts of misconduct which prevented Mr. Weinstein from testifying in his own defense to powerfully proclaim his innocence.”
In August, Weinstein was granted the right to bring his case before the Court of Appeals after a lower appeals court shot down his bid to overturn his conviction.
A Manhattan jury convicted Weinstein in February 2020 of forcibly performing oral sex on former “Project Runway” production assistant Miriam “Mimi” Haleyi in 2006 and raping hairstylist Jessica Mann in 2013.
He was acquitted of two counts of predatory sexual assault for allegedly raping actress Annabella Sciorra in the mid-1990s.
A spokesperson with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office – which prosecuted the case – said they would respond in court papers.
Weinstein was convicted last month of rape and sexual assault of an Italian model in 2013 in the Los Angeles case.
He was acquitted of sexual battery by restraint of a Jane Doe 3 and the jury was hung on whether he was guilty of sexual battery by restraint of Jane Doe 2.
Weinstein faces 18 to 24 years in prison in the LA case.