The most high-profile witness, named Jane Doe #4 in the case, Siebel Newsom is married to Gov.
Siebel Newsom said she was nervous when she was first greeted by the prosecutor, deputy district attorney Marlene Martinez.
When asked to identify Weinstein in the courtroom, as all witnesses are asked to do, she broke into tears at the question, managing to say “yes” into the microphone.
“He’s wearing a suit, and a blue tie, and he’s staring at me,” Siebel Newsom said, identifying the defendant. “I’m sorry, I just need to take a deep breath,” she said at one point early during questioning.
Siebel Newsom told the jury that when she first met Weinstein in 2005 at the Toronto International Film Festival, she was a working actor and producer with small roles, guest starring on TV shows and films, and she was not yet dating Newsom.
The prosecution made clear to the jurors that back in 2005, she did not have the same stature that she does today, as the First Partner of California.
“Harvey Weinstein was more powerful than me,” Siebel Newsom said. “He was like the kingmaker. He was the top of the industry.”
She described Weinstein as holding extreme power in the room. “It felt like the Red Sea was parting. I don’t know if it was deference or fear,” she said when he approached her to introduce himself.
“Something kind of happened and there was this big person coming toward me, and everybody sort of backed away. Then Harvey Weinstein introduced himself to me,” Siebel Newsom recalled. “He came directly to me and people sort of backed off. He wanted to know who I was, what my name was, why I was there.”
She continued, “I felt a bit intimidated. He was charming. He treated me initially like he was really curious about me.” After briefly meeting, Weinstein asked to meet up with her later. “I felt like I had to, like ‘Okay, sure,'” she said. “I felt like there was a genuine interest in talking about my work.”