A grand jury has indicted Harvey Weinstein on additional charges, prosecutors said in New York City criminal court Thursday.
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The additional charges are currently under seal, but Weinstein is expected to be arraigned at a later date. In a press conference following the hearing, Weinstein’s attorney, Arthur Aidala, said he believed the grand jury considered three incidents of alleged sexual crimes, with one taking place in 2005-06, one in 2006 and one in 2016. Aidala did not yet know what new charges or how many his client faces.
The hearing comes days after Weinstein was rushed to Bellevue Hospital in New York to undergo heart surgery. Weinstein did not appear in court Thursday as he did not receive medical clearance.
Aidala said that he had spoken to Weinstein twice Wednesday and that he has “some sort of shunt in his chest” attached to a bag draining fluids from his body, in addition to being hooked up IVs and oxygen. He does not know how long he would be in that condition, but said Weinstein still wanted to appear in court and it may be possible that he appears at the next hearing, on Sept. 18, if he is medically cleared.
Judge Curtis Farber granted the defense’s motion to hold Weinstein in Bellevue Hospital’s prison ward for the time being, rather than Rikers Island. His attorneys argued for the stay at Bellevue, saying that Weinstein’s health could not be properly monitored at Rikers Island and it was necessary to hold him at the hospital to “stop what may be the death of Mr. Weinstein.”
Weinstein’s visit to Bellevue this week was his third visit in the recent past, according to the decision read in court by Farber. He has to be “properly monitored” due to the build up of fluids around his heart, which is what led to his most recent surgery and hospital visit, Farber said. Weinstein did not testify in front of the grand jury, Aidala said, but he wants to appear in court to speak to his current health condition.
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Prosecutors will file a motion to consolidate this new indictment with the original indictment. Weinstein’s attorneys are pushing to try the cases separately and proceed with the November retrial related to the original 2020 rape charges.
Weinstein was being held at Rikers Island as he awaits a retrial in November, after his 2020 rape conviction in New York, and 23-year sentence, was overturned in April. Weinstein could also face additional indictments, as a grand jury has been impaneled and presented with up to three previously uncharged allegations against him, according to media reports.
In a statement Thursday afternoon, Jessica Mann, one of the women who brought claims against Weinstein in the 2020 trial, said she would stand with any new accusers who have come forward.
“For those who continue to have the courage to come forward against Harvey, you are not alone. I will stand alongside you as we fight for a future where monsters like Harvey no longer hide in our closets, they sit alone behind bars,” Mann said.
“As I said when Harvey was found guilty the first time, I have found my voice. I look forward to continuing to use it as I face Harvey again in court soon and prove that my life is valuable. That, I know now, is something he will never be able to take away,” she continued.
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