‘Scrubs’ Exec Producer Eric Weinberg Denied Bail and Hauled Off to Jail on Rape Charges
Eric Weinberg, the former “Scrubs” and “Californication” executive producer and writer accused of raping possibly dozens of women by luring them to his Los Feliz family home for photo shoots, pleaded not guilty but will be held without bail until his next court date in November, a judge ruled Tuesday.
Weinberg had been allowed to go free after posting $5 million bail earlier this month. Before that, he had been free on $3 million bail since his initial arrest in mid-July, but the charges – and bail amount – had been adjusted, requiring his re-arrest.
At his Tuesday arraignment, Weinberg entered a plea of not guilty to 18 counts of rape, according to Deadline. But this time, there was to be no going free on bail.
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Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Victoria B. Wilson was steadfast that Weinberg’s detention was a matter of public safety, ignoring the pleas of his lawyers who had been expecting he would get house arrest or electronic monitoring. Wilson called him a potential “serial rapist” whose methods were “brazen and predatory,” Deadline reported.
Weinberg stood up and was taken off in handcuffs by deputies as soon as the order was issued. He will be held at the Twin Towers facility in downtown Los Angeles until at least his next hearing, which is Nov. 15.
Dozens of women have come forward to say Weinberg approached them in what became a highly repeated pattern of approaching young women in public, using his Hollywood credentials to gain their trust, then inviting them to his home for a photo shoot where he would begin his aggressive sexual advances that in many cases resulted in alleged rape.
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Prosecutors said in court Tuesday that detectives have received as many as 70 tips on Weinberg since the story broke, and are currently investigating the cases of five Jane Does with more possibly in the wings.
Weinberg is being represented by defense attorney Phillip Cohen, who is also arguing the case of Danny Masterson this week at the same LA courthouse. Weinberg faces life in prison on six counts of forceful penetration, four counts of forced oral copulation, three counts of forcible rape, two counts of sexual battery, one count of assault to cause bodily injury, one count of attempted sexual penetration by use of force, and one count of false imprisonment.
