ASHLAND, Ore. — Former Hollywood film producer, Harvey Weinstein, was convicted of third-degree rape and first-degree criminal sexual assault Monday morning.
Those were two out of five charges he was facing in the state of New York.
Although he was acquitted of the more serious charges put towards him, Erin Carr with the Jackson County Sexual Assualt Response Team, says this is a monumental day.
According to Carr, sexual assaults often go unreported. She says since the Me Too movement, which was largely started when allegations against Weinstein came forth, more survivors have been coming forward with their stories.
Carr says this ruling shows that it doesn’t matter who the perpetrator is, survivors can and will be heard.
“I feel like this ruling is huge, it’s really powerful.” Erin Carr said. “I feel like it says to survivors, we believe you, we see you, we hear you and even in a high profile case, the perpetrator will be held accountable.”
Weinstein was convicted despite a lack of physical evidence in the case. While some may be concerned that this verdict means more people could come forth with false accusations in the future, Carr says it’s unlikely.
As it stands now, she said four to six percent of sexual assault cases are false allegations.
If you are a survivor of sexual abuse and need support visit, https://www.jacksoncountysart.org/
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