Sexually explicit photographs taken by “Scrubs” producer Eric Weinberg were displayed to jurors during explosive opening statements in his Los Angeles trial.
Weinberg, 66, faces 23 charges including sexual battery and forcible rape, with prosecutors alleging he assaulted six women during photo shoots at his Los Feliz home between 2014 and 2019. The producer, who also worked on “Californication,” has been held in LA County Jail since October 2022 after a judge revoked his $5 million bail following additional charges.
Lead defense attorney Phillip Cohen immediately confronted the graphic evidence, telling jurors, “You’re seeing what he’s seeing.” Cohen pressed the point that Weinberg operated openly, not covertly. “All of the information he exchanges in this case leads to Mr. Weinberg. No fake address to his house, no disposable phones, no fake email addresses, he tells them where he works,” Cohen said, arguing that pattern was “not a sign of a rapist.”
Prosecutor Ariel Anson painted a starkly different portrait of the producer’s behavior once sessions began. Anson described how Weinberg approached women at everyday locations including Starbucks and Ralphs supermarkets, presenting himself as a Hollywood producer and amateur photographer seeking subjects. The women were invited to his home, where shoots unfolded in the backyard, by the pool, in his bedroom, and in an upstairs hallway.
One accuser, identified as Kyra, was photographed in 2014 smiling and appearing relaxed in images taken moments after she alleges Weinberg sexually assaulted her. Prosecutors countered that Kyra smiles when she’s “nervous,” using the images to argue that her expression masked distress rather than indicating consent.
Another set of photos showed Weinberg’s hand around the neck of a woman identified as “Johanna,” who had allegedly agreed to “tasteful nude photographs” on March 23, 2017. “At the beginning of the shoot there were no red flags,” Anson told the jury, but the dynamic shifted dramatically upstairs. “Weinberg gets closer, he says he likes her breasts, and she notices a change in his eyes. They look like predator eyes,” the prosecutor continued.
A third accuser, Avian, was photographed topless in the backyard after she was allegedly assaulted. Anson pointed to what she described as “micro-expressions” in the images, telling jurors, “She was trying to signal to the camera that she’s not ok.” Cohen seized on that interpretation during his opening, firing back, “Does he know her micro expressions?”
The defense also displayed a graphic image showing both Weinberg’s hands and an alleged victim’s hands on intimate parts of her naked body, framing it as evidence of a consensual encounter. Throughout the presentation, Weinberg sat in court dressed in a blue suit, tie, and glasses, watching as the images flashed across the courtroom screen.
Cohen emphasized that Weinberg’s defense rests on the women’s conduct, words, and actions during the encounters, maintaining all interactions were consensual. “There’s not one indication that Weinberg knew of anyone’s fear,” Cohen said about his client’s perspective from behind the camera.
The trial stems from Weinberg’s October 2022 arrest on initial charges, followed by additional counts that prompted bail revocation. The producer, who wrote nearly 100 episodes of “Scrubs,” now faces life in prison if convicted on all counts. An eight-man, four-woman jury will determine his fate in Downtown Los Angeles.
The trial continues in Los Angeles.