One of the women included in the New York Times report on three decades worth of sexual harassment allegations against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, Italian model Ambra Battilana, pressed charges with the New York Police Department, accusing Weinstein of groping her at his apartment in March 2015. The next month, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. declined to prosecute Weinstein, saying that "after analyzing the available evidence, including multiple interviews with both parties, a criminal charge is not supported." A few months later, in August, International Business Times reports, a longtime Weinstein lawyer, David Boies, donated $10,000 to Vance's campaign.
Vance was just in the news over his decision not to file felony fraud charges against Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. in 2012, overruling his prosecutors, right after Trump lawyer Marc Kasowitz donated $25,000 to Vance's campaign. (Vance returned the $25,000 before meeting Kasowitz, who then raised $50,000 for Vance after he dropped the Trump case.) In this instance, Vance spokeswoman Joan Vollero told IBT, "Boies did not represent Harvey Weinstein in 2015 during the criminal investigation." A spokesman for Boies' law firm noted that Boies has donated to Vance's campaign since at least 2005, and said Boies "has never spoken to him about Harvey Weinstein." According to Variety, Boies is one of Weinstein's lawyers to fight the new claims from The New York Times.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Valle dell'Erica Thalasso & Spa: a tranquil haven in SardiniaThe Week Recommends This family-friendly resort is steps from the sea and boasts a well-equipped kids' club
-
America's controversial path to the atomic bombIn Depth The bombing of Hiroshima followed years of escalation by the U.S., but was it necessary?
-
Codeword: August 6, 2025The Week's daily codeword puzzle
-
India rejects Trump threat over Russian oilSpeed Read The president said he would raise tariffs on India for buying and selling Russian oil
-
NY's Hochul vows response to Texas gerrymanderSpeed Read Gov. Kathy Hochul has promised to play ball with redistricting that favors the Democrats
-
Texas Democrats exit state to block redistricting voteSpeed Read More than 51 legislators fled the state in protest of the GOP's plan to redraw congressional districts
-
Trump criticized for firing BLS chief after jobs reportSpeed Read Bureau of Labor Statistics chief Erika McEntarfer oversaw a July jobs report that the president claims was rigged
-
Trump revives K-12 Presidential Fitness TestSpeed Read The Obama administration phased the test out in 2012, replacing it with a program focused on overall health rather than standardized benchmarks
-
El Salvador scraps term limits, boosting Nayib BukeleSpeed Read New constitutional changes will allow presidents to seek reelection an indefinite number of times
-
Trump assigns tariffs, delays all except on CanadaSpeed Read A 35% tariff on many Canadian goods has gone into effect
-
Harris rules out run for California governorSpeed Read The 2024 Democratic presidential nominee ended months of speculation about her plans for the contest
