The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office accused Eric Weinberg, a co-executive producer and writer for the 2000s television comedy Scrubs, with 18 charges of sexual assault and abuse on Tuesday.
Days after accusations of rape, oral copulation, sexual battery, false imprisonment, assault using weapons of serious bodily damage, and six counts of forcible penetration by a foreign object were filed, the suspect was taken into custody. He was arrested on Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. and freed at midnight after paying $5 million bail.
Later this afternoon, District Attorney George Gascón is scheduled to conduct a press conference to discuss the accusations against Weinberg, who also served as a producer on the television shows Californication on Showtime and Anger Management on FX.
Weinberg was first detained in July on suspicion of crimes including rape, which reportedly occurred between 2012 and 2019. After securing $3,225,000 in bond, he was freed.
Weinberg appeared to have targeted women in their 20s and 30s in grocery stores, coffee shops, and other public areas at the time, according to Los Angeles Police Department investigators, who claimed he was posing as a photographer. He allegedly planned picture shoots with them and “would sexually abuse them” there. Authorities have been looking for further unidentified victims since the early 1990s and pleading with them to come forward.
For a piece that appeared on September 1st, The Hollywood Reporter spoke with a few of his accusers. A pattern of predatory behaviour and wrongdoing allegedly dating back decades was revealed by more than two dozen women. Some of the accusations date back to 2000, when he worked on the Scrubs television show, and included claims of improper behaviour involving kids.
Numerous women claimed Weinberg, who was nominated for five Emmys for his work on Scrubs and Politically Incorrect With Bill Maher, used his Hollywood background to gain trust before pressuring them to strip off during filming. He allegedly often photographed the alleged nonconsensual sexual conduct of several women.
Similar accusations were once dismissed against Weinberg. When Kayra Raecke, who was 22 at the time, told the LAPD that he had raped her during a photo session at his house, he was detained in 2014. Weinberg allegedly choked Raecke while simultaneously taking pictures with the other hand. She admitted to the police that she had feared for her life during the alleged assault. At the time, the deputy district attorney decided against filing charges due to “insufficient evidence.”
Law enforcement recommended Weinberg be charged in 2016 for a different alleged extramarital relationship with an unnamed lady. Because there was “no proof that the defendant utilised force, threats, or intimidation,” the district attorney again decided not to press charges.
According to a report by The Hollywood Reporter, Weinberg kept track of his interactions. His then-wife Hilary Bidwell is said to have discovered papers with hundreds of women’s names, numbers, and many of them with the places where they met them in 2008, like a grocery store, library, or gym. He claimed they came from earlier headshot sessions he’d conducted. After Raecke’s accusation, they once more parted ways, but they didn’t file for divorce. Then, in 2020, she began the legal process after receiving a complaint from a woman who claimed Weinberg had inappropriate contact with her young daughter.
Due to this, Bidwell decided to employ a private investigative company to find any further accusations. She found a warning against Weinberg from artist Claire Wilson on Facebook, whom she had accused of sexual assault after they met on OKCupid. In their comments, other women related their own claimed interactions with Weinberg. Since then, a group of accusers has formed and hired legal counsel.
Weinberg previously issued a statement to THR through his divorce attorney in which he refuted the accusations and claimed they were the result of his contentious divorce.
He said: “As we have regrettably witnessed lately, time and time again, a protracted and contentious custody fight has now given rise to deliberately placed criminal claims. “Law enforcement and the Los Angeles family court have previously looked into and analysed these claims, and the findings completely refute the story that is currently being spread. Due to court orders, family law regulations, and the best interests of his minor children, Mr. Weinberg is unable to comment directly on any aspect of this litigation. Nevertheless, through counsel, he will continue to cooperate in all aspects of this investigation and, if necessary, will address these allegations in the only setting that should matter—a public courtroom.