Queen Elizabeth II strips Harvey Weinstein of CBE, orders honour 'cancelled & annulled'

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth has formally stripped disgraced Hollywood film mogul and convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein of his honorary award following his conviction for sexually assaulting a former production assistant and raping an actress. The notorious former Hollywood mega-producer was convicted by New York jury of 3rd-degree rape charges & 1st degree of criminal sexual assault on February 24 this year. 

The official annoucement carried by a leading publication in London read, “The Queen has directed that the appointment of Harvey Weinstein to be an Honorary Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated 29 January 2004, shall be cancelled and annulled”.

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Weinstein was found guilty on two counts- criminal sexual assault and rape - both the allegations made by separate women. He is currently serving a 23 year jail sentence in New York. The criminal sexual assault charge came from Miriam Mimi Haleyi, who was a production assistant and said that he assaulted her in 2006. The jury also determined that Weinstein raped former aspiring actor Jessica Mann at a hotel in 2013.

Read | Extradition hearing to send Weinstein to Los Angeles delayed

In March this year after being transferred to New York state’s maximum-security Wende correctional facility in order to carry out his 23-year sentence, Weinstein was diagnosed with COVID-19.  In rejecting the settlement deal the judge noted that the agreement did not talk about an admission of guilt and Weinstein would himself not have to make the payment for the settlement amount since it would be covered by insurance.

Read | Weinstein seeks to pursue arbitration over firing

The Harvey Weinstein case is a landmark of the MeToo movement, which has brought a flurry of sexual assault and harassment allegations against powerful men and prompted conversations about gender and misconduct in all walks of life.

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