N.Y. Prosecutors Will Retry Harvey Weinstein in the Fall: 'We Believe in This Case'

Weinstein, 72, appeared in court for the first time since the New York’s Appeals Court stunning reversal of his 2020 sex crimes convictions

On May 1, Harvey Weinstein made his first court appearance since the stunning reversal of his 2020 sex crimes conviction in the landmark #MeToo case, and prosecutors said they plan to retry him.

"We believe in this case and we will be retrying this case," Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg said in court, according to reporters from CBS, Reuters and CNN.

During the preliminary hearing in Manhattan Supreme Court, the prosecution and the defense said they could be ready for a new trial this fall, after Labor Day, the New York Daily News reports.

"We have every belief the defendant will be convicted again at trial," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said, Fox News reports.

Prosecutors asked Judge Curtis Farber to remand Weinstein, the Associated Press reports. NBC News reports the judge remanded him back to the hospital for treatment and set an additional hearing for later in May.

Weinstein's attorneys argued that he is in poor health and should not be held in jail. "He's an older, sickly man and he is no danger to anyone," his attorney, Arthur Aidala said at a press conference after the hearing.

"Harvey Weinstein is now presumed innocent," Aidala added at the press conference.

Weinstein is scheduled to return to court May 29.

Weinstein arrived in court in a wheelchair and wearing a blue suit and a blue tie with handcuffs on his wrists. He appeared in court just days after he was taken to Bellevue Hospital for undisclosed medical treatment.

The pretrial hearing took place in the same court where he was found guilty of felony sex crimes in 2020.

Related: Harvey Weinstein Hospitalized in N.Y.C. After Rape Convictions Overturned

On Friday, April 26, he was transferred from the upstate New York prison where he was serving his 23-year sentence for the 2020 conviction to Rikers Island in the New York City correctional system.

The move came a day after the New York Court of Appeals overturned his 2020 conviction in a 4-to-3 decision, which determined that trial judge James Burke erroneously allowed three women whose allegations were not a part of the criminal case against Weinstein to testify about his “prior bad acts.”

Related: Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 Rape and Sexual Assault Convictions in New York Overturned

“The remedy for these egregious errors,” appeals court judge Jenny Rivera wrote for the majority, “is a new trial."

The Manhattan District Attorney's Office said it would fight for a new trial but only if witnesses are willing to take the stand again.

Jessica Mann, who testified against Weinstein, who was found guilty in 2020 of raping her, appeared in court, the Daily News reports.

The controversial decision to overturn Weinstein's conviction angered Weinstein's many accusers, who have said Weinstein subjected them to a host of predatory behavior, from forcing them to watch him masturbate to rape.

Speaking on CBS Mornings after the overturned conviction, Ashley Judd, who was the first actor to publicly accuse the former studio boss of sexual harassment, said, "What I want to note is male sexual violence is such a thief.

Related: Harvey Weinstein Accuser Ashley Judd Calls His N.Y. Conviction Overturn 'Unfair to Survivors'

"First, they rape us and then they steal our time," she said. "Because I was having a great morning and now I have to invest in talking about how not only is Harvey Weinstein still guilty, but we have institutional betrayal, which is a real thing."

Mira Sorvino, who won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1996 for her work in the movie Mighty Aphrodite, said on Instagram she was "gutsick" over the reversal.

Related: Mira Sorvino Says She Feels 'Gutsick' After Harvey Weinstein's N.Y. Conviction Is Overturned

Weinstein, she has said previously, took steps to hurt her career after she rebuffed his advances three times.

"For a time, I had a lot of wonderful offers, and then my career was stifled by Harvey Weinstein. So, I stopped doing [major] studio movies after 1998," she said, breaking into tears, while speaking alongside Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon on a recent panel hosted by PEOPLE's Editor-in-Chief Wendy Naugle at 90s Con.

Related: Mira Sorvino Tears Up at 90s Con While Recalling How Harvey Weinstein 'Stifled' Her Career

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Related: Rose McGowan Reacts to Harvey Weinstein's New York Conviction Overturning: 'We Know the Truth'

In 2020, Weinstein was convicted of third-degree rape for sexually assaulting actress Jessica Mann in 2013 and for committing a criminal sex act by forcibly performing oral sex on former production assistant Mimi Haley in 2006.

Nearly 100 other women have accused Weinstein of sexual harassment and sexual assault.

Weinstein still must serve a 16-year prison sentence for his 2022 conviction in Los Angeles for raping an actress in a Beverly Hills hotel. His lawyers are appealing that conviction.

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Weinstein's publicist Juda Englemeyer told PEOPLE, "The longterm goal and hope is for him to be exonerated completely, to walk a free man, spend time with his children and family and retire in peace knowing that he's somewhat vindicated."

Debra Katz, the attorney for Dawn Dunning, who testified as “Jane Doe#3” against Weinstein in the 2020 trial, told PEOPLE she was outraged by the decision to overturn the conviction.

"He is an unrepentant serial rapist and he should not spend one minute as a free man. And if retrying him and ensuring that he has a lengthy jail sent in New York can be done, that's what should be done. He should never again walk among free people," she told PEOPLE. "I think that he'll be convicted again. He's guilty."

Dunning was an aspiring actress who accused Weinstein of sexually assaulting her in 2004. In a statement after the shocking reversal, Dunning said, “While I’m stunned that the court threw out Weinstein’s conviction on legal technicalities, I am still proud that I testified and confronted that convicted rapist."

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