Thread by @EWagmeister

THREAD: Closing arguments have ended and deliberation begins on Tueday.

Here are some highlight's from the prosecution's closing arguments today...

“The defendant was the master of his universe and the witnesses were merely ants that he could step on…They don’t get to complain when they’re stepped on, spit on, demoralized and then, yes, raped and abused by the defendant.” — lead prosecutor Joan Illuzzi

When @RonanFarrow investigated #HarveyWeinstein reached out re Annabella Sciorra, Harvey emailed his team: “This was consensual or deny it.”

Illuzzi read the email to the jury aloud & then said, “Consensual is the opposite of denying it -- I submit to you: that’s a confession!”

Illuzzi says Annabella Sciorra was on Harvey's "red flag list," which he had Black Cube investigate because she was a threat to him. In comparison, the other witnesses in this trial are "complete disposables" ...

“You know who you don’t see on the red flag list and you don’t see w/ Black Cube? Dawn and Lauren and Mimi and Jessica and Tarale. Why do you think? This is simple. It’s really quite simple..."

"...Annabella is in his industry...These other women, they were never in his world, they were never gonna be in his world, they're never going to be strong enough, bold enough or brave enough to tell. But Annabella? Hmm. Someone might believe her.”

The prosecution knows that Jessica Mann is a complex witness.

Joan Illuzzi told the jury, “The question is not whether Jessica Mann made a bad decision. The question for you is whether or not Jessica is lying. If she’s telling you the truth, she’s the victim of rape.”

Joan Illuzzi on Jessica Mann's long, grueling testimony: “She sat here. She took it. Three days worth! She owned her behavior for the chance to come here and tell you, ‘Harvey Weinstein raped me.’"

In her closing remarks, Illuzzi argued #HarveyWeinstein is the monster and the women are the victims.

“When Harvey Weinstein met the witnesses, he looked quite different than he does today…When HW met the witnesses, they were scared. They felt isolated and they were alone..."

"…they were able to take a stand. They didn't come for a beauty contest, they didn’t come for money, they didn’t come for fame. They came to be heard. They sacrificed their dignity, their privacy and their peace for the prospect that their voices would be enough for justice."