Harvey Weinstein, the once-powerful Hollywood mogul now serving time for sexual assault, was hospitalized in New York City on Monday following what his attorney described as an "alarming blood test."
What Happened?
Weinstein, 72, was taken from Rikers Island to Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan after a blood test revealed "alarming" results requiring immediate medical attention, according to his lawyer, Imran Ansari.
"It is expected that he will remain at the hospital until his condition stabilizes," Ansari said in a statement, calling the situation both a medical failure and a violation of Weinstein's constitutional rights.
A spokesperson for New York City's Department of Correction did not immediately respond to an email, according to The Associated Press (AP).
Weinstein has been custody since earlier this year after the New York Court of Appeals overturned his 2020 rape conviction in the state.
The former producer, who has faced a litany of health issues, has long accused the city's jail system of providing inadequate medical care.
In a recent legal filing, Weinstein's attorneys claimed the conditions at Rikers amounted to negligence, exacerbating chronic ailments including diabetes and chronic myeloid leukemia.
"When I last visited him, I found him with blood spatter on his prison garb, possibly from IV's, clothes that had not been washed for weeks, and he had not even been provided clean underwear—hardly sanitary conditions for someone with severe medical conditions," Ansari said, comparing the jail to a "gulag."
Weinstein's publicist, Juda Engelmayer, echoed Ansari's sentiment, saying, "In many ways, this mistreatment constitutes cruel and unusual punishment."
This development comes just days after a federal judge signaled a potential federal takeover of New York City's troubled jail system, finding the city had placed its incarcerated population in "unconstitutional danger."
Weinstein's Cases
Weinstein, whose 2020 rape conviction was overturned earlier this year, is awaiting a retrial set for 2025. He has consistently denied all allegations of misconduct.
Weinstein was found guilty in 2020 of the sexual assault of former production assistant Miriam Haley and the rape of aspiring actress Jessica Mann. He was sentenced to 23 years in prison.
The conviction was overturned in April of this year by a New York Court of Appeals ruling. The court determined that three women who were not included in the charges should not have been allowed to speak about alleged assault during their trial testimony.
However, in September, just days after Weinstein was rushed to the hospital for emergency heart surgery, he was indicted on additional sex crime charges ahead of his retrial in New York.
In the most recent charge, prosecutors allege that Weinstein forced oral sex on a woman at a Manhattan hotel in the spring of 2006.
Weinstein has since pleaded not guilty to criminal sex act in the first degree before Justice Curtis Farber in a New York City courtroom.
Weinstein has been held at New York City's Rikers Island jail complex since his conviction was overturned. The 72-year-old has faced numerous health issues while in custody. In addition to his legal battles in New York, Weinstein was convicted of rape in Los Angeles in 2022. His lawyers are currently appealing that conviction also.
Weinstein, once one of Hollywood's most powerful figures, cofounded Miramax and The Weinstein Company and produced critically acclaimed films, including Shakespeare in Love and The Crying Game. The accusations against him helped spark the global #MeToo movement in 2017.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
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