Harvey Weinstein juror says conviction was not influenced by #MeToo movement

A juror who served on the Harvey Weinstein trial says the conviction of the former movie mogul was based solely on the crimes on which he was charged in the courtroom — not on the #MeToo movement.

“There is no message,” the juror said. “We were there to do a job.”

The juror — who asked to be referred to by his first name only, Drew — spoke to Gayle King on “CBS This Morning.”

Drew was part of the 12-person jury, which was made up of five women and seven men, and sat for the course of the seven-week trial in the New York City Criminal courthouse.

The jury found Weinstein guilty of two charges — a criminal sex act in the first-degree and rape in the third-degree — and acquitted him of three charges. The charges on which Weinstein was convicted were based on a 2006 assault of Miriam Haley in his New York City apartment, and a 2013 rape of Jessica Mann in a New York City hotel room.

During the trial, Weinstein’s legal team regularly said their client was the face of a movement, and pleaded to the jury not to convict him unfairly because of the #MeToo climate. During closing arguments, Weinstein’s lead attorney Donna Rotunno urged the jury to use their “New York City common sense,” and to consider that the women testifying against Weinstein were using him for their own personal and professional gain and were embarrassed about their sexual involvement with him.

On “CBS This Morning,” the juror said the panel did not make their decision based on the #MeToo movement, and said the 12 people did not discuss the impact their verdict could have on society.

“That’s not the job and that’s not what we were asked to do,” the juror told King. “It would be an adulteration of the process to take outside factors and have that weigh on our decision-making process and eventual findings. I have no appetite or aspirations to be the voice or face of both the jury and the larger movement. This case, these people, this is our decision.”

Drew marks the second juror to speak up, following a woman, who also asked to appear without her name, on “Inside Edition.”

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