Mel Gibson may testify at Harvey Weinstein’s trial, the judge says

Mel Gibson may testify from one of the prosecutors Harvey Weinstein, a judge on Friday in his trial for the rape and sexual assault of a former movie mogul.

The 66-year-old actor and director was one of many witnesses and by far the most famous whose identities were revealed to the Los Angeles Supreme Court.

The judge and attorneys took a break from selecting a jury to submit conclusions about what evidence would be allowed at the trial and who could testify. The list of witnesses for the trial is sealed.

Judge Lisa B. Lench ruled that Gibson may testify in support of her masseuse and friend who will be known as Jane Doe # 3 at trial.

Weinstein is accused of being sexually assaulted by restraint against a woman, one of 11 rapes and sexual assaults in a trial against a 70-year-old.

Prosecutors said that after a massage from a woman at a California hotel in Beverly Hills in May 2010, a naked Weinstein followed her into the bathroom and masturbated. Weinstein pleaded not guilty and denied any involuntary sexual activity.

Weinstein’s attorneys argued against allowing Gibson to testify, saying that what he learned from a woman during a massage from her was not a “new complaint” under the law for Gibson to take a stand. A “New Complaint” under California law allows evidence of a sexual assault or other crime to be submitted if the victim reports it to someone else voluntarily and relatively soon after it has happened.

Prosecutors said when Gibson accidentally mentioned Weinstein’s name, the woman suffered a traumatic reaction and Gibson realized she had been sexually abused. Gibson did not remember the date of the exchange, but the prosecution will use another witness, Allison Weiner, who remembers talking to Gibson and the woman in 2015.

Judge Lench said Gibson’s testimony would depend on how the prosecutor described his interview with him, when he took a stand, and that he might decide to rule against her at that time.

Weinstein’s attorney, Mark Werksman, further argued that if Gibson took office, the defense should be able to hear him on the widely publicized anti-Semitic remarks Gibson made during his 2006 arrest, as well as on the racist statements directed at the girl that were recorded and publicized in 2010.

Lench said a broader discussion of Gibson’s racism was not relevant to the trial, but would make it possible to question whether he had personal prejudices and an aversion to Weinstein.

Werksman argued that Gibson had such prejudices both because Weinstein was a Jew and because Weinstein published a book that criticized the portrayal of Jews in Gibson’s 2004 film The Passion of Christ.

“Any evidence of Mr. Gibson’s racism or anti-Semitism could create a bias against my client who challenged him,” Werksman said.

The lawyer briefly and incorrectly said he thought the movie won an Academy Award for Best Picture, but Weinstein, whose films once dominated the Oscars, shook his head as he sat at the defense table.

“Sorry, my client would know better than me,” said Werksman. “But it was an award-winning film.”

The defense also argued that Gibson tried to whitewash his image by focusing on Weinstein’s misdemeanors and claiming to be a champion of the #MeToo movement.

The prosecution argued that Gibson had not made such suggestions about himself and that when talking to his masseuse, he said he was discussing a business deal with Weinstein, showing that there was no such bias.

Assistant District Attorney Marlene Martinez called Gibson’s past comments “vile,” but said they were irrelevant to the narrow purposes for which he would be appointed.

Gibson’s testimony suggests the prospect that two of Hollywood’s two most powerful men who have gone through public failures will come face to face in a court of law.

An email asking for a comment from a Gibson representative was not returned immediately.

In one of several similar rulings on Friday, Lench also discovered that “Melrose Place” actress Daphne Zuniga may testify in a similar capacity for the woman known at trial as Jane Doe # 4, whom Weinstein is accused of raping in 2004 or 2005.

The Associated Press typically does not list the names of people claiming to have been sexually abused.

Weinstein is already serving a 23-year sentence for a 2020 conviction for rape and sexual assault in New York City. The state’s highest court agreed to hear his appeal in this case.

He was then flown to Los Angeles for a trial that began Monday, five years after women’s stories about him had given the #MeToo movement a huge boost.

Friday’s quarrels came the day after the premiere of “She Said,” which tells the story of the work of two New York Times reporters whose stories have struck Weinstein down.

Weinstein’s attorneys previously sought to delay the Los Angeles trial because the film’s notoriety could contaminate the jury, but a judge rejected their request.

The trial is expected to last eight weeks. The judge and attorneys will return to the jury selection process on Monday morning, with opening statements scheduled to begin on October 24.