NEW YORK SLICE.

THAT'S ABSOLUTELY TRUE.

WELCOME BACK TO "CBS THIS

MORNING."

I'M GAYLE KING WITH ANTHONY

MASON AND TONY DOKOUPIL.

IN AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW,

HARVEY WEINSTEIN'S ATTORNEY SAYS

SHE IS CONFIDENT HE'LL BE FOND

NOT GUILTY IN THE CHARGES

AGAINST HIM.

HIS TRIAL STARTS IN JANUARY.

NOW, MORE THAN 70 WOMEN HAVE

ACCUSED HIM OF WRONGDOING SINCE

AN EXPLOSIVE "NEW YORK TIMES"

INVESTIGATION TWO YEARS AGO THAT

INSPIRED THE ME TOO MOVE

MANAGEMENT.

WEINSTEIN DENIES ALL OF THE

ALLEGATIONS.

HIS ATTORNEY DONNA RATUNNO IS A

FORMER PROSECUTE OR, AND SHE'S

HANDLED DOZENS OF CASES

DEFENDING MEMBER ACCUSED OF

SEXUAL MISCONDUCT.

I'VE HEARD YOU SAY YOU'RE NOT

A BELIEVER OR SUPPORTER OF THE

ME TOO MOVEMENT.

MORE OF A SUPPORTER.

I THINK IN MANY WAYS THERE ARE

GOOD THINGS ABOUT ME TOO, AND

I'VE SAID THIS.

BUT WHAT BOTHERS ME ABOUT ME TOO

IS IT ALLOWS THE COURT OF PUBLIC

OPINION TO TAKE OVER THE

NARRATIVE, AND WHEN YOU CAN'T

COME OUT AND EITHER CORRECT OR

CHALLENGE THAT NARRATIVE, IT

PUTS YOU IN A POSITION WHERE

YOU'RE STRIPPED OF YOUR RIGHTS.

CHICAGO ATTORNEY DONNA

RATUNNO HAS BUILT A REPUTATION

DEFENDING MEN ACCUSED OF SEXUAL

ASSAULT AND RAPE.

HER TRIAL WITH HARVEY WEINSTEIN

IS HER MOST HIGH-PROFILE CASE TO

DATE.

WHAT IS YOUR STRATEGY IN

DEFENDING HIM?

IT'S VALUING WHAT IT IS, AND

DETERMINING WHETHER THE

ALLEGATIONS ARE THINGS WE CAN

REFUTE.

IN THE CRIMINAL CASE THERE ARE

TWO CHARGED VICTIMS, AND IN BOTH

CASES, I FEEL STRONGLY ABOUT THE

FACT THAT WE HAVE EVIDENCE THAT

IS FAVORABLE TO US AND EVIDENCE

I THINK WILL EXONERATE HIM.

WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TWO

WOMEN, BUT AS YOU KNOW, DONNA,

THE STORY IS MUCH BIGGER THAN

THAT.

I KNOW YOU'RE NOT NAIVE TO THAT.

CLEARLY WE'VE GOT 70 WOMEN,

NAMES YOU KNOW, ASHLEY JUDD,

SALMA HAYEK,

.

THESE ARE CERTAINLY SERIOUS

ALLEGATIONS.

HOW YOU DO RESPOND TO THAT, AND

DOES THAT MATTER TO YOU?

SURE, I THINK IT MATTERS.

IT MIGHT MATTER TO ME IN MY

ANALYSIS OF THE WHOLE

CIRCUMSTANCES BUT IF I LOOK AT

THE CRIMINAL CASE, FRANKLY,

THOSE ALLEGATIONS DON'T MATTER

IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CRIMINAL

CASE.

HOW DOES HARVEY EXPLAIN THOSE

ALLEGATIONS?

I DON'T THINK IT'S ABOUT

EXPLAINING THEM.

ANY TIME WE TALK ABOUT MEN AND

WOMEN AND SEXUAL CIRCUMSTANCES I

THINK WE HAVE TO LOOK AT THE

FACT THERE'S ALWAYS AN AREA OF

GRAY.

SO THERE'S THESE BLURRED LINES

AND I THINK SOMETIMES ONE

SIDEWALKS AWAY FROM AN EVENT

FEELING DIFFERENT THAN THE OTHER

AND HOW DO WE RECONCILE THAT.

IT'S NOT UNCOMMON FOR A WOMAN

WHO HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN A

TRAUMATIC ENGAGE MANAGEMENT TO

STILL BE ENGAGED WITH THAT MAN.

THAT'S HER CHOICE.

BUT TO COME FORWARD -- WHO KNOWS

YEARS LATER IF YOUR MEMORY IS

EXACTLY THE WAY IT WAS AT THE

TIME IT DID.

I GET FRUSTRATED WHEN I HEAR

THESE TYPES OF SITUATIONS AND I

HEAR WOMEN SAY, I DIDN'T HAVE A

CHOICE.

WELL, NO.

YOU HAD A CHOICE AND YOU MADE A

CHOICE.

WE'RE FOCUSING ON YOUR TWO

CRIMINAL CASES, BUT YOU DO SEEM

TO MINIMALIZE ALL THE OTHER

CHARGES AND ALLEGATIONS ABOUT

HARVEY WEINSTEIN.

IT'S NOT MINIMIZING IT BUT

FOR MY PURPOSE IN THIS CASE,

IT'S NOT WHERE I HAVE TO BUT MY

TIME AND ATTENTION.

IT'S REALLY ABOUT MAKING SURE

THOSE ISSUES DON'T CLOUD OUR

ABILITY TO PICK A FAIR JURY.

Reporter: IN ADDITION TO

HARVEY WEINSTEIN'S TWO ACCUSERS,

AT LEAST THREE OTHER WOMEN ARE

EXPECTED TO TESTIFY AS SO-CALLED

PRIOR BAD ACT WITNESSES.

THEIR TESTIMONY WILL BE USED BY

PROSECUTORS TO DEMONSTRATE A

PATTERN OF BEHAVIOR.

IN THE BILL COSBY CASE, IT WAS

INVOLVING ONE WOMAN, BUT OTHER

WOMEN WHO MADE ALLEGATIONS WERE

ALLOWED TO TESTIFY.

THAT SEEMED TO MAKE A

DETERMINATION FOR THE JURY, FOR

SURE IN THE SECOND CASE.

IS THERE A CONCERN ABOUT THAT?

SURE, THERE'S ALWAYS A

CONCERN.

I THINK THE NEGS OF WHERE

THERE'S SMOKE, THERE'S FIRE IS

SOMETHING WE HAVE TO WORRY

ABOUT.

THIS IS MORE THAN FIRE,

DONNA.

IT'S AN INFERNO WHEN IT COMES TO

HARVEY WEINSTEIN.

I THINK WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE

CRIMINAL CASE, I I DON'T THINK

IT'S THE CASE.

I I'M NOT HERE TO SAY HE'S NOT

GL OF COMMITTING SINS.

THERE'S A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN

SINS AND CRIME.

I DO NOT BELIEVE HE'S A RAPIST.

YOU DO NOT THINK HE'S A

RAPIST.

DO YOU EVER THINK YOU'RE

MAYBING IT HARDER FOR WOMEN TO

COME FORWARD?

NO.

I'D LIKE TO THINK I'M MAKING IT

EASIER.

IF THEY FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE, THE

FRST THING THEY SHOULD DO IS

REPORT IT, GO TO THE POLICE, AND

I THINK THAT SORT OF WEEDING OUT

THE CASES THAT DON'T RISE TO THE

LEVEL OF REAL ASSAULTS SHOULD

HELP REAL VICTIMS.

SO, NO, I THINK I'M HELPING THEM

ACTUALLY.

DOESN'T A MAN HAVE TO TAKE

RESPONSIBILITY FOR HIS ACTION,

TOO?

NO QUESTION.

AND THE CHOICES HE MAKES?

NO QUESTION.

AND I THINK NO MATTER WHAT

HAPPENS TO HARVEY, HE'LL PAY THE

BIGGEST PRICE.

EVEN SO, HIS LIFE IS RUINED,

TOPPED, DESTROYED BY OTHERS.

THE FACT IS IF WE CAN WALK OUT

OF THE COURTROOM WITH A NOT

GUILTY, HE NEVER GETS TO BE

HARVEY WEINSTEIN EVER AGAIN.

HARVEY WEINSTEIN DENIES THE

ACCUSATIONS AND FACE AS SENTENCE

OF UP TO LIFE IN PRISON IF

CONVICTED.

DONNA RAH TA'U NOE HAS BEEN VERY

INVOLVED IN THE PREPARATION OF

THIS CASE AND HAVE NOT YET

DECIDED WHETHER HE'S GOING TO

TAKE THE STAND.

THOUGH GLORIA ALLRED WHO

REPRESENTS ONE OF THE VICTIMS IS

IMPLORING HIM TO DO SO.

SHE WRITES THIS.

I CHALLENGE HARVEY WEINSTEIN TO

TALK THE STAND AND DENY UNDER

OATH THE ALLEGATIONS PROUT BY

THE PROSECUTION AGAINST HIM.

MS. RAH TA'U NOE WANTS TO

FOCUS ON THE SIN, NOT THE

SUBSTANCE OF THE CRIME.

I ASKED HER DO YOU HAVE A

JURY IN MIND.

SHE SAID, OF COURSE, BUT I DON'T

WANT TO TIP MY HAND.

ARTICLES WRITTEN ABOUT HER HAVE

DESCRIBED HER AS A BULLDOG IN

THE COURTROOM.

I ASKED HER IF THAT'S AN

ASSESSMENT.

SHE SAID, I DIDN'T SAY THAT.

ONE OF MY CLIENTS DID.