Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer Arthur Aidala was seen visiting him in hospital on Friday, as a spokesman for the convicted rapist said he is ‘mentally down’.
Aidala was pictured in the lobby of Bellevue Hospital, Manhattan, Friday morning, where Weinstein has been in custody since Monday after he started suffering from heart palpitations and chest pains while on route to Rikers Island.
The disgraced media mogul fell ill just hours after being convicted by a New York jury of raping Jessica Mann in 2013 and sexually assaulting Mimi Haleyi in 2006.
His defense attorney Aidala was spotted buying snacks in the hospital while visiting his client, on the same day that doctors had ordered a CAT scan for Weinstein, according to a source.
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer Arthur Aidala (above) was seen visiting him in hospital on Friday, as a spokesman for the convicted rapist said he is ‘mentally down’
Aidala was pictured in the lobby of Bellevue Hospital, Manhattan, Friday morning, where Weinstein has been in custody since Monday after he started suffering from heart palpitations and chest pains as he was being transported to Rikers Island
The sex offender is enjoying his time in the hospital reading books about Winston Churchill and speaking with his two young children and ex-wife Georgina Chapman, the source said.
His team has been rallying round, as a spokesman for the convicted rapist warned that he is ‘mentally down’ following his conviction.
Spokesman Juda Engelmayer, who also paid a visit to Weinstein’s hospital bed Friday, said the Hollywood producer has struggled to come to terms with the jury’s decision.
‘He doesn’t understand how the jury didn’t understand that he’s not guilty of these crimes,’ said Engelmayer, according to Page Six.
‘He’s not in the best spirits.’
Engelmayer sought to dispel rumors that Weinstein’s diversion to hospital – instead of Rikers Island correctional facility – has left him with a sweeter deal.
‘He’s emotionally down, he’s mentally down. He’s in a prison,’ he said.
The disgraced media mogul fell ill just hours after being convicted by a New York jury of raping Jessica Mann in 2013 and sexually assaulting Mimi Haleyi in 2006
A source revealed on Friday that doctors had ordered a CAT scan for Weinstein
‘Let’s dispel any notion he’s in some cushy place. His hospital room is a cinder block room with a hospital bed and a very wide open stainless steel toilet with no lid and open glass windows all around. Any cops or hospital staff can see in when they walk by.’
But last night his victims accused him of getting special treatment after claims emerged that he is staying in a large hospital suite with his family – a far cry from a cell in grim Rikers Island, often nicknamed Torture Island.
As he enters his fifth day in hospital, it emerged that Weinstein’s defense lawyers are having second thoughts about trying to get him out on bail.
The convicted rapist’s team have been rallying round, as a spokesman warned that he is ‘mentally down’ after being convicted
His defense attorney Aidala was spotted buying snacks in the hospital (above) while visiting his client
His legal team had initially said after his conviction that they were trying to get him released on bond prior to his March 11 sentencing.
But Aidala now says that might not be the case due to separate charges Weinstein is facing in California.
Aidala told Bloomberg on Friday that he fears the convicted rapist could be arrested by Los Angeles authorities if they try to get him out on bail while he awaits sentencing in New York.
Weinstein’s lawyers fear the convicted rapist could be arrested by Los Angeles authorities if they try to get him out on bail while he awaits sentencing in New York. He is pictured arriving at court on Monday on the day he was convicted
‘This is all new uncharted territory,’ said Aidala.
‘He’s got his case in LA, and we’re trying to figure out – if we get him out – they could immediately move to get him in their custody once a judge here grants him bail.’
In the California case, Weinstein is accused of raping one woman in a Beverly Hills hotel and groping another woman, model Lauren Young, while masturbating in a hotel bathroom on consecutive nights during Oscars week in 2013.
He is charged with forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by use of force and sexual battery by restraint.
The charges, which were announced the night before his New York rape trial started on January 6, could land Weinstein an additional 28 years in prison if convicted of the most serious counts.
Weinstein, who plans to appeal, is facing up to 29 years in prison for the New York conviction.
His legal team had initially said after his conviction that they were trying to get him released on bond prior to his March 11 sentencing. But Aidala now says that might not be the case due to separate charges Weinstein is facing in California
Weinstein was convicted by a New York jury this week of raping Jessica Mann in 2013 and sexually assaulting Mimi Haleyi in 2006
The LA case will not start until after his sentencing in New York on March 11 and no date has yet been set.
Weinstein is expected to be released into the custody of Los Angeles authorities so he can face trial there. If convicted, he would then serve any potential prison sentence in California after his New York sentence is over.
Weinstein’s lawyer Donna Rotunno told DailyMail.com that their team haven’t yet started thinking about the LA case.
One of the woman Weinstein is charged with sexually assaulting in the LA case, Lauren Young, was one of the six accusers who testified during the New York trial.
Young, a model and actress, was among three women allowed to testify as prosecutors sought to show Weinstein’s ‘prior bad acts’ to establish a pattern of abuse.
Weinstein was convicted by a jury of sexually assaulting former production assistant Mimi Haleyi in 2006 (left) and raping aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013 (right)
One of the woman Weinstein is charged with sexually assaulting in the LA case, Lauren Marie Young, was one of the six accusers who testified during the New York trial
It is not yet clear how many prior bad act witnesses LA prosecutors will call in that case.
California does not have the same restraints New York does in terms of allowing such witnesses and prosecutors are reportedly hoping to take advantage of it by widening the scope and number of witnesses they can use to show an alleged pattern.
Italian-Filipina model Ambra Gutierrez is expected to be one of those witnesses, sources told the New York Times.
Gutierrez was one of the first women to publicly accuse Weinstein of sexual misconduct in 2015 when she went to police and claimed he had fondled her breasts and put his hand up her skirt during a business meeting.
Investigators had her wear a wire when she went to meet with the producer the following day and he was heard in the tapes apologizing for his inappropriate touching as he begged her to go to his hotel room.
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, however, declined to press charges at the time.
While LA prosecutors can’t bring charges against Weinstein over Gutierrez’s allegations, her testimony is expected to play a role in the case there.
As Weinstein’s defense attorneys mull their next move, one of the jurors who found him guilty spoke out on Friday saying that the verdict had nothing to do with the #MeToo movement.
Juror No 9, who gave his name only as Drew, said the group focused on the evidence alone before making their decision.
The verdict ‘absolutely’ did not point towards a ‘stance or voice as to any larger movement’, he added.
Asked whether wider implications had been considered, the juror told a US broadcaster: ‘No, zero, absolutely zero.’
It is not yet clear when Weinstein will be transported to Rikers Island.