Harvey Weinstein could be seen dramatically clinging on to an inhaler during a tense courtroom appearance in New York City on Wednesday. The disgraced film producer, 73, was wheeled into court wearing a suit and tie as he appeared before a judge in a desperate bid to be moved from the notorious Rikers Island jail during his retrial.
He arrived as the jury selection for his upcoming rape case resumed. Weinstein’s legal team have filed an urgent request to have him transferred to the medical ward at Bellevue Hospital, claiming the dire conditions at Rikers are affecting his health and could ultimately prove fatal.
Lawyer Imran Ansari said: “He has been worn down considerably health-wise, and now faces the stress of trial in this condition, which may very well lead to serious health complications, even death. This mistreatment is having a dramatic effect.”
Weinstein suffers from chronic myeloid leukemia, diabetes, heart problems, obstructive sleep apnea, sciatica, and severe mobility issues. According to his legal team, he has gained nearly 20 pounds in the past month and was recently hospitalised after a tongue infection went misdiagnosed behind bars.
In court Weinstein clutched his inhaler as his lawyer outlined the daily struggles he faces at Rikers, including freezing temperatures and a lack of clean clothing. Ansari claimed the conditions were so poor, they’ve left the former film producer in a “deteriorating” state.
Judge Curtis Farber has not yet ruled on whether Weinstein will be granted a transfer. The request was not discussed during Wednesday’s proceedings, which instead focused on continuing the jury selection process.
No jurors had been selected by the end of Tuesday’s session, and the second day saw two dozen more potential panel members brought in for questioning.
Weinstein is facing a retrial after New York’s highest court overturned his 2020 conviction last year, ruling that prejudicial testimony had unfairly influenced the original outcome. He is being retried on two of the original charges: raping an aspiring actor in a Manhattan hotel in 2013, and forcing oral sex on a production assistant in 2006.
A third woman, who was not part of the original case and has remained anonymous, has also come forward to accuse Weinstein of forcing oral sex on her in a New York hotel. He denies all allegations and has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
This is not the first time Weinstein’s lawyers have attempted to raise concern over his treatment at Rikers. Last year they filed a legal claim against the city, seeking $5 million in damages over what they called “substandard medical care” and unsanitary conditions.
The former producer recently told the Daily Mail that the jail is “inhumane, horrifying and needs to be torn down”. Rikers Island has faced intense scrutiny over inmate treatment in recent years, with a federal judge warning in 2024 that the facility places detainees in “unconstitutional danger”. This statement could be used to support Weinstein’s appeal to be moved.
Meanwhile, as the Weinstein faces one retrial in New York, he is also appealing his 16-year prison sentence for a 2022 rape conviction in Los Angeles.
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