Weinstein may not take the stand, film mogul's team says

Donna Rotunno, one of the defendant's lawyers, immediately asked the judge to dismiss the case, arguing testimony from the woman he is charged with raping "does not in any way show a forcible act". The judge rejected the request.

Mr Weinstein's lawyers will start calling witnesses but haven't said whether he will take the witness stand.

Doing so could bring big risks because prosecutors would be able to grill him about each of the allegations jurors have heard about.

"I tell my clients once you take the stand you have lost your shield which is me, and you are on your own," said defence lawyer Brian McMonagle, who helped secure a mistrial in Bill Cosby's first sex-assault trial in 2017. Cosby was later convicted. "In my experience as a prosecutor and defence attorney, it is rare to see a client take the stand," he said. "The problem is that some jurors do hold that against you."

Among the witnesses the defence is expected to call is a psychologist who specialises in memory. The defence aims to raise doubts about the women's recollections of encounters that in some cases are more than a decade or two old.

The criminal charges at the trial in New York City are based on two allegations: that Mr Weinstein raped actress Jessica Mann in March 2013 and he forced oral sex on another woman in 2006.

Mr Weinstein (67) maintains any sexual encounters were consensual.

Prosecutors ended their case after the last of the other accusers told jurors about an encounter with the movie mogul in 2013.

Lauren Marie Young, a model from Philadelphia, said he invited her to his Beverly Hills hotel room, lured her to the bathroom, stripped off his clothes, pulled down her dress and groped her breast.

Her allegation is part of a criminal case filed against Mr Weinstein in California just as this trial was beginning.

Additional women, including Ms Young, have been allowed to testify in New York as prosecutors try to show there was a practised method to attacks, including inviting women to his hotel room to discuss business, then disrobing and demanding sexual favours.

Jurors heard similar stories of Mr Weinstein ingratiating himself with other women, appearing to show interest in helping their careers before getting them into a hotel room.

Jurors also were reminded of the complexity of the women's relationships with him.

For example, the woman he is charged with raping faced three days of questioning as Mr Weinstein's lawyers scoured friendly, sometimes flirtatious emails she sent the film producer after the alleged assault.

The woman acknowledged meeting Mr Weinstein for other sexual encounters.

She said she kept in touch because "his ego was so fragile" and that contacting him "made me feel safe."