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Jury Selection Begins In Harvey Weinstein's Sex Crimes Retrial; Trump's Foreign Envoy Reverses Stance On Iran Nuclear Enrichment; Midnight Deadline Quickly Approaching To File Taxes. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired April 15, 2025 - 14:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[14:30:00]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: Still to come, Harvey Weinstein is back in court. Jury selection now underway in the retrial for his alleged sex -- sex crimes. Up next, how the case could be different this time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:35:01]

DEAN: Jury selection is underway as disgraced Hollywood producer, Harvey Weinstein, goes back on trial in New York, five years after being convicted of rape and sentenced to 23 years in prison in what was hailed as a victory for the Me Too movement.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: You may recall that conviction was overturned last year. An appeals court ruled that Weinstein had been deprived of a fair trial. He's remained in custody in New York as he appeals a separate sex assault conviction in California.

For Weinstein, this retrial is another chance toward exoneration. For his accusers, the stakes feel higher amid a changed cultural and political climate in the United States.

Joining us to discuss is defense attorney, Misty Marris.

Misty, thanks so much for sharing part of your afternoon with us.

How hard do you think it's going to be to seat an impartial jury in this retrial?

MISTY MARRIS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Boris, jury selection is going to be incredibly difficult. There is not a person in New York, even in the country or on the planet, who hasn't heard of Harvey Weinstein and does not have some information about his prior conviction.

Maybe the conviction was overturned in New York. And also remember, he still convicted on charges in California.

So in order to cut through individuals who hold biases, right from the get-go, the judge has created some unique rules during voir dire -- that's the jury selection process -- by which the jurors will be asked, when the pool comes into the room, can you be impartial? And those that say they cannot be, will be dismissed from the case? So

there's a lot going into seeding this jury.

Including jury questionnaires and a lot of research on prospective jurors, is being done on both sides in order to get jurors, not who have -- haven't heard of the case, but who can listen to the evidence and go in with a clear mind and make a decision on what they hear in court.

DEAN: Yes. And this case, the original Weinstein case, was so -- was really the epitome of the Me Too movement. And it was such a big part of it.

Now, one of Weinsteins attorneys is quoted in "Variety" magazine saying, "This is going to be a very different trial. The mob mentality that was so pronounced," they said, "at his first trial, I think has subsided. He's going to have the trial that he should have had all along."

Misty, what do you think about that?

MARRIS: So part of it, that comment sounds -- it speaks to the culture now and how the culture has changed since the Me Too movement. And obviously, Harvey Weinstein was really symbolic at the time. During his first trial.

But take away that cultural aspect and the implications of how the world has shifted in mentality, it's going to be very different because of the ruling that actually overturned Harvey Weinsteins case. Meaning that certain witnesses are not going to be permitted to testify.

In his original trial, there were three, what's called Molineux witnesses. And that's a -- that's a New York case, which allows for individuals to testify on uncharged conduct. So meaning conduct that's never been in court because it shows that there's a pattern, a modus operandi.

So those three witnesses testified the first time around. They will not be permitted to testify in this new trial.

Also, the other reason why the conviction was overturned, because Harvey Weinstein would have been confronted with some of that uncharged conduct with some of the other pending charges, which we're in California at the time, had he taken the stand.

Those are no longer on the table, and prosecutors will be a lot more limited in cross-examination should Harvey Weinstein choose to testify.

So the trial itself is just going to look a lot different based on that appellate court ruling.

SANCHEZ: Misty Marris, always great to get your point of view. Thanks for joining us.

MARRIS: Thank you.

[14:38:27]

Coming up, President Trump's envoy to the Middle East, setting a new demand on Iran's nuclear program, total elimination. We'll discuss in just a few minutes.

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[14:43:27]

SANCHEZ: This just into CNN, President Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, appears to be backpedaling on comments he made regarding nuclear talks with Iran.

Initially, Witkoff said that talks with Tehran would be about verification of its nuclear program, though he did stop short of calling for total dismantlement.

Now, in a post on X, he writes, quote, "Any final arrangement must set a framework for peace, stability and prosperity in the Middle East, meaning that Iran must stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment and weaponization program."

CNN's Alex Marquardt joins us.

So, Alex, what does this mean for the next round of talks between the U.S. and Tehran that are set for this Saturday?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: It certainly complicates them, Boris. I mean, the Iranians certainly are going to be asking the same questions we are now, why this reversal from Steve Witkoff?

We heard from the Iranians following that meeting in Oman on Saturday. Everything appeared to have gone well. They said that it set the table for a framework for negotiations.

And key to that framework is this question of whether or not Iran is allowed to keep any kind of enrichment program at all. They have said it's a red line. They must hold on to at least some kind of civilian enrichment program for -- for nuclear power.

And the Americans appeared to be on board with that. We heard from Steve Witkoff last night talking about verification programs that need to be in place to make sure that Iran doesn't exceed a certain enrichment level, to make sure that they don't weaponize.

Here's a little bit of what he told Sean Hannity on FOX News last night. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[14:45:00]

STEVE WITKOFF, U.S. MIDDLE EAST ENVOY: This is going to be much about verification on the enrichment program. And then ultimately, verification on weaponization.

That includes missiles, the type of missiles that they have stockpiled there. And it includes the trigger for a bomb.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: So, Boris, Witkoff went on to say that there's no reason that Iran needs to enrich past 3.67 percent, a very specific number. Remember, you need about 90 percent enrichment to -- to get to a bomb.

So he was allowing for the possibility of civilian enrichment for energy.

And then today, an apparent reversal with that tweet in which he -- he says that the -- there should be an elimination of its nuclear enrichment and weapons weaponization program. That seems pretty clear. Eliminate the nuclear enrichment program.

Now, I reached out to the administration for some clarification. An administration official told me that they thought the tweet was pretty clear as well. And that this is the most recent elaboration of the policy.

Now, we have seen some fairly maximalist positions from others in the administration, like Pete Hegseth, like Mike Waltz, the national security advisor, who says there has to be a full dismantlement of Iran's nuclear program. Again, that crosses a red line for the Iranians.

So it does beg the question of where these conversations on Saturday begin. It's -- I think it's too soon to say that they're in jeopardy. But certainly, the Iranians are going to respond to this, I believe, saying, no, this we very much intend to hold on to a civilian program.

So now there's going to be a lot more interest in these talks on Saturday. It remains to be seen where they are. Rome has been mentioned, back in Oman has been mentioned. That, we're waiting to figure out as well.

SANCHEZ: Yes. We'll see how Tehran responds to this.

Alex Marquardt, thank you so much.

Jessica?

DEAN: Now let's take a look at some of the other headlines we're watching this hour.

Pfizer has announced it will stop development of a pill that could have potentially been used to treat obesity. The pharmaceutical company says they had to halt their research after a participant in early trials experienced a liver injury that ended once the person stopped taking that treatment.

A Pfizer official says they will keep developing other obesity treatments now, in the earlier stages of testing. Rapper and old-town road singer, Lil Nas X, is in the hospital. He posted this video from his bed showing partial paralysis in his face.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIL NASS X, RAPPER: And when I smile, this is me doing a full smile right now. By the way, it's like -- its like what the (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: The Grammy winner did not reveal the cause of his condition.

And finally, compelling examples of how instinct kicked in after that 5.2 magnitude earthquake rocked southern California yesterday.

A mom in the town of Julian snapped up her baby as the home began rattling.

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(RATTLING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: A baby monitor capturing the little one undergoing a rude awakening. The mom said the whole house shook. Their child had been sleeping peacefully. Oh, poor baby.

We'll be right back.

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[14:52:32]

SANCHEZ: It's a bit of a holiday that no one really enjoys. Happy Tax Day. If you are still scrambling to file yours ahead of the midnight deadline, what have you been up to?

DEAN: What have you -- I --

SANCHEZ: To be fair, you're probably not alone.

DEAN: Maybe -- maybe you're probably not alone. Maybe there are extenuating circumstances. Who are we to say? But you did wait till the last minute.

CNN's Harry Enten is here.

Harry, are there any signs that people do wait until the last minute? I'm sure there are. I'm sure there are plenty of people that do.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Boris is very judgy, let me tell you.

(LAUGHTER) ENTEN: I was just on the phone with my accountant right now. I was saying refund, refund, refund. And he said, yes, maybe, maybe, maybe.

Anyway, let's talk about this a little bit. All right. People waiting until the last minute. You know what? If you wait until the last minute, you're not alone. Because let's take a look at the google searches today.

Filing taxes, up 284 percent versus this same time last week. This is the highest number of folks who are, in fact, Googling filing taxes throughout this entire year. So there are a ton of people who are waiting until the last minute.

What types of numbers are we talking about here? Well, let's take a look here. Who files taxes the week of April 15th? Well, I looked at the IRS Web site. I went back through the years.

And you know what the number is. Get this. It's about 20 million folks who file their taxes within the last week, about five million more than any other week during the year.

So despite the fact that Boris Sanchez, live on CNN, was very judgy against those who filed the last minute, know this. You are not alone if you're filing this week.

SANCHEZ: Listen, I filed them the week before. So no joke, I literally filed them like April --

DEAN: That's OK.

SANCHEZ: -- 7th or so.

Harry, I think you're going to get a return. You've donated so much to charity in the form of Mets tickets --

ENTEN: I know.

SANCHEZ: -- that you keep buying, only to watch that awful team lose.

How do people generally feel about the IRS and filing taxes?

ENTEN: I think the Mets actually made the playoffs last year and actually advance to the NLCS.

(CROSSTALK)

ENTEN: And I think they're doing pretty gosh darn good this year.

My memory is the Miami Marlins are so bad --

(CROSSTALK)

ENTEN: -- that they actually had to change their name. Is that right? Is that right? I think they had --

(CROSSTALK) DEAN: Does that have to do with taxes or no?

ENTEN: We're going to talk -- we're going to talk about -- Jessica, don't worry. Thank you for getting us back on the right track here.

How about favorable view of different federal agencies? All right. Take a look here. The Park Service comes in at number one, 76 percent. The USPS mail, 72 percent.

Look at the IRS. Just 38 percent of Americans have a favorable view of the IRS. It is the least viewed favorably federal agency among Democrats, Republicans. And overall, 16 out of 16.

[14:55:04]

And of course, finally, when it comes to filing your taxes, the income taxes you pay, not fair or fair? Back in 2005, get this, guys, it was 61 percent who said fair, 34 percent who said unfair.

Get this. This year, 46 percent say fair. Now the majority, 50 percent, say that the taxes they file, at least income taxes, are not fair. So they're your Tax Day statistics. And then, Boris and I will talk about baseball off air.

DEAN: Yes, you can offline that.

Harry Enten, thank you so much.

ENTEN: Thank you.

DEAN: I -- we all wish you that refund

Two World Series for the --

ENTEN: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: -- Marlins since we've been alive. How many for the Mets? I don't know.

Harry Enten, thank you so much.

DEAN: Oh.

Still to come --

ENTEN: Oh, very mean. Mean, mean.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

DEAN: Still to come, the dramatic rescue of a hiker seen clinging to the side of this cliff.

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