The morning after two new Harvey Weinstein accusers, Mimi Haleyi and Dominique Huett, spoke out about their horrendous experiences, Megyn Kelly sat down with them and their lawyers to discuss their claims. Haleyi, a former production assistant on a television show Weinstein produced, and Huett, an actress known for her recent work on Blue Bloods, relayed much of what they had previously said on Tuesday. However, what Kelly was especially concerned with were the pair’s similar accounts of Weinstein’s helpers and enablers.
“New disturbing allegations today against Harvey Weinstein, and — this is the critical part — those accused of enabling his alleged crimes,” Kelly began. “There are over 65 women now who have come out accusing him. Over 65 accusing him of some sort of sexual misconduct — ranging from harassment to sexual assault to rape. And the latest claim is, there were helpers.” Haleyi and Huett’s stories about what Weinstein specifically did to them match similar allegations made by other women who’ve come forward, but the possibility that the Hollywood mogul had help was rather alarming.
Haleyi breached the topic first while recounting her experiences with Weinstein, saying she “didn’t know what to do because I couldn’t really get away, physically.” What’s more, he recalled she “had to get through a hallway” and “a lift” in order to escape Weinstein altogether. “I was even thinking, ‘The driver that took me here is downstairs, holding guard.’ I don’t know! I don’t know what arrangement they have.” The former production assistant didn’t outright accuse the driver of being complicit, nor did she name any names while discussing Weinstein’s possible accomplices, but the thought did cross her mind.
Huett, meanwhile, didn’t necessarily have the same concerns Haleyi did in the moment. However, as her representation revealed on Tuesday, her case has resulted in the first major lawsuit regarding the allegations levied against Weinstein. Specifically, Huett is suing The Weinstein Company, and not Weinstein himself. Calling it “provocative,” Kelly noted the lawsuit is claiming “the board and the company had knowledge and had the obligation to protect women… There’s a real question about whether that’s where this case is going.”
Jeff Herman, Huett’s lead attorney, then explained the ultimate goal of their lawsuit — determining whether or not The Weinstein Company’s board, and especially Harvey’s brother and partner, Bob Weinstein, knew what was going on. A previous New York Times report indicated the company’s top brass was aware of settlements as early as 2015, but Huett and Herman are suggesting it goes much deeper than that. “We already know that these meetings were being set up by employees,” Herman told Kelly. “We know that there were these ‘honeypots,’ these employers that were there to kind of get these women to feel safe in these rooms.”
Kelly tapered Herman’s comments here, noting that no proof of these so-called “honeypots” had popped up yet. Haleyi’s attorney Gloria Allred, however, suggested it was only a matter of time before evidence for this and other notable items came out.
(Via NBC and Los Angeles Times)