NEW YORK (AP) – Lawyers for Harvey Weinstein are disputing claims that he portrayed a former model as an aspiring actress who tried to exploit him. These claims include allegations of sexual assault from her teenage years.
Defense attorney Mike Sibera suggested, “I thought consensual relations with Weinstein would lead to stardom.”
“That’s not what actually occurred,” Kaha Sokora responded. “I never had an agreement with Mr. Weinstein.”
During the day of questioning, Sibera indicated that Sokora might not have fully described her interactions with Weinstein. He repeatedly asked if she had invited Weinstein to her New York apartment in 2005, to which she firmly denied.
“I didn’t want a shortcut from Mr. Weinstein. I wanted to be truthful with him,” Sokora declared, her tone intensifying.
She claimed that the Oscar-winning producer had assured her he would support her acting aspirations, but instead “smashed my dreams and shattered my self-esteem.”
A Polish psychotherapist accused Weinstein of sexually abusing her multiple times when she was a young model. Although some accusations may fall outside the legal timeframe for charges, Weinstein still faces allegations from Sokora regarding forced oral sex in 2006.
Last year, prosecutors added charges to the high-profile #MeToo case after an appeals court overturned Weinstein’s 2020 conviction, which stemmed from allegations involving two other women.
At 73, Weinstein maintains his innocence and claims that no one has ever assaulted him.
Sokora, 39, who began her modeling career as a teenager, testified that Weinstein exploited her youthful ambition, subjecting her to unwanted advances at 16 during a modeling trip to New York.
She recounted an incident at 19 when Weinstein invited her to a hotel room, claiming there was a script to discuss, then assaulted her despite her lack of consent.
Though she never secured an acting role in a Weinstein film, she was cast as an extra in 2007’s The Nanny Diaries, a scene that ultimately did not make the final cut.
Weinstein’s company also provided her with a letter of recommendation for acting school, which she said she couldn’t afford.
Sokora previously sued Weinstein for the 2002 incident, receiving about $3.5 million in compensation. This suit did not mention alleged incidents from 2006, and she admitted in court that accepting the 2002 abuse was easier than facing the later assaults.
Sibera highlighted this omission and implied that her lawsuits could be a strategy for achieving financial autonomy, to which she responded that she was working two jobs and had a stable relationship.
Sibera also contrasted the details of Sokora’s current testimony with her statements from last year’s trial, suggesting a possible advantage in her ongoing legal pursuits to remain in the U.S.
Sokora’s testimony is set to continue next week.
The Associated Press typically doesn’t disclose the names of those who allege sexual assault, but Sokora has granted explicit permission to be named.
