Harvey Weinstein, victim of mistreatment in prison? The defense team of the former all-powerful producer of American cinema filed a complaint this Tuesday against the city of New York, on the grounds that their client received substandard medical treatment in unsanitary conditions, within the famous Rikers Island prison complex.
The notice of claim, which constitutes the first step in a legal action against the city, accuses the establishment of having failed to manage the health problems of the former cinema mogul, who suffers in particular from chronic myelogenous leukemia and diabetes, and negligence, ranging from “freezing” conditions to not having clean clothes.
“When I visited him for the last time, I found him with blood spatters on his prison outfit, probably from drips, clothes that hadn’t been washed in weeks, and he didn’t “hadn’t even been given clean underwear – barely sanitary conditions for someone who suffers from serious health problems,” Weinstein’s lawyer said, Imran H. Ansariin a press release, comparing the establishment to a “gulag”.
5 million in damages
Weinstein, 72, has been in city custody since the beginning of the year, after the New York appeals court overturned his 2020 rape conviction in the state. The case is expected to be retried in 2025. Weinstein has always denied the accusations against him.
The former star producer was briefly hospitalized in April, then in July, for health problems. He was treated for diabetes, high blood pressure, spinal stenosis, COVID-19, and abnormal fluids in his heart and lungs.
In the suit filed on behalf of Harvey Weinstein, the defense team seeks $5 million in damages, claims he was returned to Rikers each time before being fully recovered. The question of the safety of Rikers Island often comes up in the news. The prison was supposed to be closed in 2027, but the city has always pushed back the deadlines.
