Eric Weinberg, a TV writer and producer for shows like ‘Scrubs’ and ‘Californication’ who was arrested in July for ‘multiple’ reports of sexual assault, is accused by more than two dozen women – many of whom are talking publicly – of luring them to his family home, where he brazenly sexually assaulted them, according to The Hollywood Reporter in a article published Thursday.
The comprehensive report details how Weinberg approaches young women in public places, using his Hollywood credentials — along with scripted flattery and calculated reassurances — to win their trust and interest. Once home, Weinberg was repeatedly described as immediately becoming sexually and physically aggressive, overstepping speech boundaries, and often taking graphic photos while committing the assaults.
There is evidence that Weinberg has been engaged in this scheme for more than 20 years, and investigators suggest the victims could number in the hundreds. THR said it spoke with a woman who met Weinberg as early as 2000; at some point in 2008, Weinberg’s wife found several nude photos and sheets of paper in her golf bag with the handwritten names, numbers, and locations of hundreds of women.
“We haven’t scratched the surface,” a detective involved in the investigation told THR. “It’s overwhelming the number of new women who have come forward.”
Weinberg remains free on $3.2 million bail, which he posted after his July 14 arrest. He is charged with 20 counts of sexual assault, including rape, and will remain free until his arraignment, which is not yet scheduled.
Weinberg was executive producer, co-executive producer or consulting producer on 10 high-profile television shows dating back to 2005, including “Veronica’s Closet” and Charlie Sheen’s post-collapse show “Anger Management” from 2013-14. He was a writer on that show, as well as several others — including Bill Maher’s “Scrubs” and “Politically Incorrect,” for which Weinberg earned Emmy nominations. He collected five nominations from 1995 to 2006 but did not win.
Behind the horrors of the assaults described by the many victims lie similar accounts of police indifference and inaction that have spanned years and multiple reports against Weinberg. Some said they filed a complaint but were never contacted (the woman accusing “Home Alone” actor Devin Ratray reports the same experience in New York); others had their cases recommended to prosecutors, but were never prosecuted.
In one case, a woman told THR she brought a friend to the photo shoot as a precaution; both said they were assaulted during the same visit. In 2014, a woman was administered a rape kit immediately after the photoshoot assault and filed a complaint that was ultimately dismissed for “insufficient evidence”. She was called back to the district attorney’s office later that year when another woman accused Weinberg of the same pattern. This case was also not prosecuted.
In the end, it took a coalition of survivors who had found each other online, through personal connections or by calling Weinberg’s wife, to attract the attention of law enforcement. Claire Wilson, an artist based in Los Angeles, told THR that when she posted on a private women’s Facebook group about Weinberg in 2020, it sparked a flurry of similar stories and comments.
At the time, Weinberg’s wife, Hilary Bidwell, in a divorce and custody battle with her then-husband, Googled his name and “sexual assault.” She found the group Wilson had posted to, made contact, and a few victims agreed to provide affidavits.
Bidwell hired private investigators to search for other survivors, who remained skeptical of the truth of what she was accusing him of – until earlier this year when Bidwell received an out of the blue call from a model 22-year-old named Cassidy Rouch, saying she was sexually assaulted by Weinberg at their home.
THR says that prompted investigators to contact David DeJute, a former assistant U.S. attorney now practicing law in Los Angeles, who took an interest in the case and assembled a group of Weinberg accusers for a meeting. They also cooperated with law enforcement and the LAPD Special Assault Section handled the case.
After months of waiting, on July 14, more than a dozen officers in tactical gear arrested Weinberg and served a search warrant for the home — the same Los Feliz home where he is accused of assaulting the women, in some cases starting the gunfire and aggressive advances into her young daughter’s bedroom.
Some of the women Weinberg approached were underage at the time. Bidwell tells THR that the mother of a 17-year-old called her in 2017, saying her husband had invited the girl over, then pulled her onto his sofa and tried to unzip her sweater. In 2019, a girl who was 16 at the time says Weinberg approached her at a Starbucks a few blocks from the high school where she and her teenage son were classmates; she recognized the boy when Weinberg, trying to reassure her that he was a good guy, showed her a picture of his family.
Weinberg’s habit of approaching potential victims was so prolific that he would sometimes propose the same woman repeatedly—or women who knew him before—without acknowledging them.
Five separate women told THR that Weinberg approached them years or weeks apart, showing up each time. A woman filmed Weinberg in October 2017 after he rode up to her on his bike, telling her in the video: ‘You should stop harassing me and stop walking with me and stop following me – it’s really scary , dude. … You did this three times in one month.
Actress Azure Parsons told THR that Weinberg, showrunner of the 2011 MTV show “Death Valley,” stalked her for the duration of the show’s only season – then a few years later stopped in her driveway and started complimenting her body, saying he wanted to photograph her. She says she yelled at him after which he tried to force her into his car. She says she escaped, but the police never followed up on her complaint.
According to THR, Weinberg has sought treatment for sex addiction many times over the years while trying to keep his marriage together, admitting to extramarital affairs and inappropriate behavior but denying assault or forced contact. Bidwell filed for divorce several times beginning in 2008, each time unsuccessfully, although they had been living under a separation and joint custody agreement since 2009.
Aside from his divorce attorney Karen Silver, Weinberg’s representatives could not be determined. Silver did not immediately respond to request for comment, but did provide the following statement to THR:
“As we have sadly seen these days, time and time again a highly contentious and acrimonious custody dispute has now resulted in strategically placed criminal allegations. These allegations have already been investigated and reviewed by law enforcement and the Los Angeles Family Court and the results have continued to uncover a myriad of evidence, documents and analysis. experts who completely undermine the narrative being promulgated. While Mr. Weinberg himself cannot comment on any aspect of this litigation due to court orders, family law rules, and in the best interests of his minor children, he will continue through a attorney to cooperate with all aspects of this investigation and, if necessary, will address these allegations in the only forum that should matter – a public courtroom.
