Scrubs writer Eric Weinberg trial opens on 23 rape and assault counts
Television writer Eric Weinberg, 66, appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom on Thursday, 1 October 2026, as lawyers gave opening statements in his trial on 23 counts of rape and sexual assault.
Prosecutor Ariel Anson set out the case for the state. Defence lawyer Philip Cohen set out the case for Weinberg, according to Variety.
Weinberg is credited as a writer and producer on the comedy series Scrubs and the drama Californication. He has been in jail since 2022 while awaiting trial. The trial is expected to last six to eight weeks.
Prosecutors allege Weinberg posed as an amateur photographer to lure seven women to his home in Los Feliz, where he sexually assaulted them. The alleged assaults took place from 2014 to 2019.
The seven women named in the charges will take the witness stand. They are identified in court only by their first names.
An eighth woman will also testify. Her allegations are not included in the charges against Weinberg.
The trial follows a case that has grown since Weinberg was first arrested. Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department arrested and booked him in July 2022 on suspicion of serial sexual assault, including rape, with alleged incidents at that time put at between 2012 and 2019, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón then announced an 18-count complaint against Weinberg in October 2022, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. Prosecutors said at that stage the charges related to at least five women.
Weinberg was taken back into custody after those charges were filed. A judge later revoked his 5-million-dollar bail, and Weinberg pleaded not guilty to 18 counts. He was ordered to stand trial in May 2024, according to The New York Times.
Civil lawsuits alleging rape were also filed against Weinberg in the weeks after the 2022 criminal charges. The criminal case now proceeds on 23 counts.
Weinberg was formerly a co-executive producer on Scrubs, a credit that refers to a senior writing and producing role, one step below executive producer. No verdict has been reached. The court will hear evidence over the coming weeks before any finding is made.
