As NY prosecutors probe new accusations of violent sex assault, his lawyers say he suffers "excruciating" internal fluid retention at Rikers Island.
Andrew Kelly/AP
At least one woman has come forward with new, "violent sexual assault" accusations against Harvey Weinstein, prosecutors said as both sides gathered in court Tuesday to discuss next steps for his Manhattan retrial.
No details of the new accusations were revealed as the disgraced film producer — who is being held at New York's Rikers Island jail — listened from his wheelchair at the defense table, with his lawyers beside him and a courtroom full of reporters behind him.
But the allegations — involving a woman or women who say they were attacked in Manhattan — are timely and serious enough that prosecutors said they may lead to a grand jury and new charges.
Any new charges would be tacked onto a retrial of Weinstein's now-overturned 2020 conviction for attacking former aspiring actor Jessica Mann, who has publicly accused the producer of rape and who attended Tuesday's court date.
The retrial, previously scheduled for September, is now on track for November, said Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg.
"Do we have two complainants or one?" defense lawyer Arthur Aidala demanded impatiently at one point, referring to the retrial.
He accused prosecutors of dragging out the retrial in order to troll for additional victims. Prosecutors are "out there with a hotline — 1-800-GET-HARVEY," Aidala joked bitterly.
"We are ready to go to trial in a week if necessary," the lawyer said.
Much of Tuesday's hearing involved Aidala detailing why a speedy retrial must be held given what he described as his 73-year-old client's downward-spiraling health issues.
Weinstein calls his attorneys "in excruciating pain," Aidala told New York Supreme Court Justice Curtis Farber, who will preside over the retrial.
"Mr. Weinstein has fluid on his heart," the lawyer said. "Mr. Weinstein has fluid in his lungs," he added, giving the most detailed description of Weinstein's condition to date.
Weinstein suffers from spinal stenosis, macular degeneration, and "his diabetes is going through the roof," Aidala told the judge.
The food at Rikers is mostly carbohydrates, and since these carbs are converted to sugar, "his blood sugar levels are off the charts," Aidala said, citing a doctor's examination that was not shared with reporters or entered into the record.
Weinstein had been serving a 23-year sentence on his New York conviction when that verdict was overturned.
He is still being held in New York due to his 2022 rape conviction out of Los Angeles, for which he was sentenced to 16 years. Weinstein is also appealing that conviction.
Before being moved to Rikers in May, Weinstein had always been held in a hospital setting, Aidala said, asking the judge to help get him returned to a secure city hospital pending his retrial.
"I'll take an active role in it," the judge promised.
Weinstein is getting no treatment at Rikers, where he is kept alone all day in a cell in the notorious jail's West Facility, which houses ill inmates, his lawyer said.
The former chief financial officer for Donald Trump's real estate empire, Allen Weisselberg, is also currently serving a perjury sentence in the West Facility. His release date is July 19.
The facility, where Weisselberg previously served a five-month sentence for tax fraud, is considered Rikers' cushiest address.
Weinstein is essentially held in "solitary confinement," Aidala told the judge. "The only recreation he gets is when a nice corrections officer chats with him."
Asked after court whether Weinstein's life is in danger due to his health issues, Aidala answered, "This isn't a hangnail."
Weinstein is due back in court July 19.
