Hollywood producer ordered to stand trial in rape case

FILE PHOTO: Hollywood producer Eric Weinberg is taken into custody at his arraignment in Superior Court in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2022. Weinberg, executive producer for the hit TV show “Scrubs,” was denied bail after pleading not guilty to sexually assaulting five women who prosecutors said he lured to photo shoots. At right, his defense attorney, Robin Sax. (Robyn Beck/Pool Photo via AP)

LOS ANGELES – Veteran TV writer and producer Eric Weinberg, whose credits include “Scrubs,” “Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher,” “Californication” and “American Dad,” has been ordered to stand trial on charges that he raped and sexually assaulted multiple women.

Judge Charlaine Olmedo ruled Tuesday that Weinberg be tried on 28 counts, after hearing testimony from nine women at a preliminary hearing that ran from late April to early May, according to multiple media reports.

Olmedo dismissed four other counts, finding that three fell outside the statute of limitations, and that there was not enough evidence to take the other one to trial, NBC News reported.

Weinberg, 62, was a writer and producer on “Scrubs” and wrote for “Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher” and “Californication,” among other shows. The women allege they were sexually assaulted by him after being lured to his Los Feliz home for photo shoots.

Weinberg was initially arrested July 14, 2022 by the Los Angeles Police Department and released the next day on a $3.2 million bond, then re-arrested Oct. 4 of that year and freed after a $5 million bond was posted.

On Oct. 25, 2022, he was ordered to be taken into custody without bail after pleading not guilty to 18 criminal charges.

He faces possible multiple life sentences if convicted. His trial date has not been set yet, but arraignment is scheduled for June 4.

LAPD investigators said Weinberg “appears to have targeted women in grocery stores, coffee shops and other public places” and invited them to his home for photo shoots, where the alleged sexual assaults took place.

More than a dozen women have also filed lawsuits accusing Weinberg of sexual abuse. (CNS)