Harvey Weinstein Ailing In Prison: “Closely Monitored” With Fever, His Reps Say
Harvey Weinstein is being “closely monitored” with a fever in prison, his reps said today. The former mogul who was convicted of rape early this year in New York is serving a 23-year sentence in a state prison near Buffalo.
Weinstein’s publicist Juda Englemeyer, and Craig Rothfeld, his authorized rep from the New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision and Department of Health, said in a statement to Deadline that the ex-producer has a fever but would “neither confirm nor deny that Mr. Weinstein has tested positive for COVID-19.”
They said his illness “should come as no surprise that Mr. Weinstein has numerous maladies and conditions including a heart condition, high blood pressure and spinal stenosis.” Read their full statement below.
Back in March, about a month after Weinstein’s conviction, an Empire State law enforcement official confirmed to Deadline had tested positive for the disease and was placed in isolation at at the maximum-security Wende Correctional Facility. A source told us days later that the inmate was “over the hump and just mending.”
New York law enforcement is not commenting on today’s news about Weinstein, though.
The Oscar-winning Shakespeare in Love producer who co-ran Miramax Films with his brother Bob Weinstein for a quarter-century was the subject of a scathing New York Times exposé in October 2017 that began his downfall and elevated the then-nascent #MeToo movement.
First arrested in New York in late May 2018, more than seven months after the first of multiple damning Times articles, Weinstein initially faced two counts of predatory sexual assault, one count of criminal sexual act in the first degree and one count each of first-degree rape and third-degree rape in New York. He faced travel restrictions and was out on $5 million bail after entering a not guilty plea on July 9, 2018. Weinstein entered a plea of not guilty again on August 26, 2019, when a new indictment was added.
He was accused by Ashley Judd, faced a sex-trafficking class action and was the subject of another lawsuit by a woman who says he abused her when she was 16 in 2002. He also faced allegations from nearly 100 other women who say he sexually assaulted or sexually harassed them. A proposed $19 million settlement with Weinstein and his former company was ridiculed by some accusers, who used terms like “insulting” to describe the offer. They noted that the deal in its original form would see millions more for lawyers and former members of the Weinstein Company board with no admission of guilt on the part of Weinstein himself.
The jailed ex-mogul also faces numerous felony counts of rape and sexual assault in Los Angeles, including several more than were added last month. If convicted on all of the California charges, Weinstein, 68, could face an additional 140 years in prison.
In London, according to the BBC, Metro Police were looking into allegations they had received from 11 women, while another alleged assault was being investigated in Dublin, according to the New York Times.
Here is the statement from Weinstein’s reps:
At this time, according to Juda Englemeyer, his publicist, and Craig Rothfeld, his authorized NYSDOCCS and NYS Department of Health Representative, we can neither confirm nor deny that Mr. Weinstein has tested positive for COVID-19.
We can confirm that Mr. Weinstein has a fever and is being closely monitored by the excellent medical staff at Wende CF for which the entire legal defense team is grateful.
It should come as no surprise that Mr. Weinstein has numerous maladies and conditions including a heart condition, high blood pressure and spinal stenosis. We are working with the NYSDOCCS and the excellent team at Wende CF to ensure Mr. Weinstein receives the proper medical attention he needs.
As information becomes available that we are at liberty to discuss we will update everyone accordingly.
Dominic Patten contributed to this report.
More from Deadline
Best of Deadline
U.S. Coronavirus Update: Cases Surpass 10 Million Nationwide As Global Total Hits 50 Million
Coronavirus: Movies That Have Halted Or Delayed Production Amid Outbreak
Hong Kong Filmart Postponed Due To Coronavirus Fears; Event Moves Two Weeks Before Toronto
Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
