The lawyer for Harvey Weinstein says the former film producer has been taken to hospital after being moved to a New York jail.
It comes days after the movie mogul’s 2020 conviction for rape was overturned, with a New York court ordering a new trial in the landmark “MeToo” case.
Arthur Aidala, Weinstein’s lawyer, said his client was moved to Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan for tests after his arrival on Friday to the prison system in the city.
“They examined him and sent him to Bellevue. It seems like he needs a lot of help, physically. He’s got a lot of problems. He’s getting all kinds of tests. He’s somewhat of a train wreck health-wise,” Mr Aidala said.
The hospital did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
Weinstein, 72, has been in prison since 2020 and on Thursday, the New York Court of Appeals overturned his 2020 rape conviction.
The state’s highest court found the judge at the trial prejudiced Weinstein with “egregious” improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that were not part of the case.
He remains in jail despite the recent ruling because he was convicted in Los Angeles in 2022 of another rape. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison for that crime.
Mr Aidala, Weinstein’s lawyer, said he is still “sharp as a tack” mentally, and his health problems are physical.
For some time, Weinstein has had cardiac issues, diabetes, sleep apnea and eye problems.
He was moved to the Rikers Island jail complex from the Mohawk Correctional Facility where he had been since 2023.
“He was not treated well. They refused to give him even a sip of water, no food, no bathroom break,” said Mr Aidala.
“He’s a 72-year-old sickly man.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision said Weinstein was turned over to the city’s Department of Correction in accordance with the appeal ruling.
Weinstein has been serving a 23-year sentence in a New York prison after being accused of sexually assaulting ex-production assistant Mimi Haleyi in 2006 and raping former aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013 following the landmark 2020 trial.
Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg – who is already involved in a hush money trial against former president Donald Trump – will now decide whether Weinstein will receive a retrial.
A spokesperson for Mr Bragg said in an email: “We will do everything in our power to retry this case, and remain steadfast in our commitment to survivors of sexual assault.”
Deborah Tuerkheimer, a professor at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law and former assistant district attorney in Manhattan, said whether there is a second trial will “hinge on the preferences of the women who would have to testify again and endure the ordeal of a retrial.”
“I think ultimately this will come down to whether they feel it’s something they want to do, are able to do,” she said.
Source Agencies
