NEW YORK, June 7 (Reuters) – Former Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein, now in jail after being convicted of sex crimes, on Tuesday sued the US business of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles for a crash in 2019 in which he overturned Jeep Wrangler while trying to avoid the deer.
Weinstein is seeking $ 5 million in damages, saying the August 17, 2019 incident in Bedford, New York, left him “catastrophically wounded and paralyzed” with “significant and continuing conscious pain and suffering” from what his lawyer called ” heavy spine and back “. injuries. “
According to a lawsuit filed in New York State Court in Manhattan, Weinstein was wearing a seatbelt when the 2017 Wrangler brakes failed when he approached a deer, causing a rollover.
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Weinstein said defendant FCA US LLC provided him with an “unjustifiably dangerous” vehicle in exchange for product positioning in one of his films.
Bedford is about 40 miles (64 km) north of Manhattan.
Stellantis (STLA.MI), which now owns the FCA, has no immediate comment.
Gary Kavulic, Weinstein’s lawyer, disputed press reports that his client was unharmed, saying Weinstein had told authorities he was injured in the incident.
“He is in constant pain, it’s exhausting,” Kavulic said in a statement, adding that negotiations with the FCA to prevent a lawsuit “took months and months.”
Weinstein, 70, is serving a 23-year sentence after being convicted by a jury in Manhattan in February 2020 of sexual assault and rape.
The New York State Court of Appeals upheld the verdict on Thursday. Read more
The case remains the most famous trial in the #MeToo movement against the sexual abuse of prominent men.
Weinstein underwent back surgery in December 2019 and used a walker during the trial.
He is awaiting trial in Los Angeles for other alleged sexual offenses from 2004 to 2013 and pleaded not guilty. Weinstein denied any sexual contact without consent.
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Report by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Edited by Bernadette Baum and Bill Bercrot
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