Years Before Harvey Weinstein Surrendered, Prosecutors Did 'Opposition Research' on His First Accuse
Source: The Daily Beast
THIS TIME IS DIFFERENT
Years Before Harvey Weinstein Surrendered, Prosecutors Did ‘Opposition Research’ on His First Accuser
Ambra Battilana Gutierrez stepped up and was let down by Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance. A detective who worked the case reveals why
MICHAEL DALY
05.25.18 4:47 AM ET
As word spread that Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance is finally bringing sexual assault charges against Harvey Weinstein, a statement of perfect grace came from an earlier victim whose own case had been dropped by the same prosecutors despite a recorded confession.
“I’m really happy to see that this story is getting the right development,” Ambra Battilana Gutierrez texted The Daily Beast. “I hope the victims can feel free and proud to have spoken so that something like this will never happen again.”
Her first thoughts were of other victims and of other women who might have otherwise become victims, not of herself and the disgraceful way the district attorney’s office treated her in 2015. Words that describe her impulse include class and decency. She affirmed the high opinion of the cops who had found her completely believable from the moment she walked into a Manhattan stationhouse, visibly distraught as she reported being assaulted by Weinstein.
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What is also clear is that the prosecutors put considerably less effort into investigating Weinstein than they did Battilana.
“They did a lot of opposition research on her,” the retired detective said. “They spent more time investigating the victim than they did the suspect.”
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Read more: https://www.thedailybeast.com/after-investigating-victim-ambra-battilana-manhattan-da-cy-vance-finally-charges-harvey-weinstein
