Harvey Weinstein has declared himself not guilty of new criminal charges.

The 72-year-old former film producer was arraigned in New York on Wednesday, where he entered a not guilty plea regarding a first-degree criminal sexual act.

YSL News is seeking comments from Weinstein’s representative.

This court appearance came just over a week after Weinstein had emergency heart surgery and was hospitalized.

Last week, prosecutors announced that Weinstein faced additional charges with an indictment that was not publicly available at that time. Weinstein’s representative, Juda Engelmayer, noted they hadn’t received the indictment, stating, “we have no knowledge of its contents, the individuals involved, or when these events purportedly took place.”

According to Weinstein’s team, he was brought to Bellevue Hospital on September 8 due to multiple health issues, leading to emergency heart surgery. On September 12, Engelmayer reported that Weinstein was “resting in the hospital” post-surgery, connected to monitors, IVs, and drainage bags to manage bodily fluids.

In July, it was reported that Weinstein tested positive for COVID-19 and developed double pneumonia, in addition to dealing with “diabetes, high blood pressure, spinal stenosis, fluid accumulation around his heart and lungs, among other health concerns.”

Reasons behind the overturning of Harvey Weinstein’s New York conviction

In February 2020, Weinstein was convicted of a first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape, which was a significant moment for the #MeToo movement, resulting in a 23-year prison sentence.

These charges were based on accusations from Miriam “Mimi” Hal eyi and Jessica Mann. Mann accused Weinstein of raping her in a hotel room in 2013, while Haleyi claimed he forced her to perform oral sex in his apartment in 2006.

However, in April, a New York appellate court overturned his conviction, ruling that the judge had allowed “irrelevant” testimony during the trial regarding accusations that were not part of the case.

The court’s opinion on overturning Weinstein’s conviction emphasized: “In our justice system, an accused individual should only be held accountable for the crime charged against them, and evidence of past misconduct cannot be used solely to show a pattern of criminal behavior,” according to the majority opinion of the court.

This ruling does not impact Weinstein’s 2022 rape conviction from a separate case in Los Angeles, where he received a 16-year prison sentence.

Weinstein is currently awaiting a retrial in New York, with a tentative date set for November. He maintains his innocence regarding all allegations of non-consensual sexual activity.

Contributions from: Jack Queen, Reuters; Taijuan Moorman and Edward Segarra, YSL News