Top New York warden says jail officials preparing for Harvey Weinstein trying to harm himself: ‘There seems to be a Jeffrey Epstein influence’
Weinstein was transferred to a hospital on his way to Rikers Island
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Your support makes all the difference.Prison officials are taking security measures to ensure Harvey Weinstein doesn’t harm himself while in detention, according to a New York warden.
Joe Russo, the president of the Deputy Wardens Association, a Department of Correction union, told The City that Weinstein is being kept under close watch.
Weinstein was convicted on Monday of sexual assault and third-degree rape. He was taken to Manhattan’s Bellevue Hospital while being transferred to Rikers Island, after complaining of chest pains and high blood pressure.
“He’s very high-profile and you can’t put him with somebody else,” Russo said of Weinstein.
According to Russo, Weinstein could be moved to a facility other than Rikers Island in order to ensure his safety.
Russo told the outlet that Weinstein is currently escorted by a jail captain at all relevant times and that the hospital jail unit has been shut down to prevent him from running into other inmates.
“There seems to be a Jeffrey Epstein influence here,” Russo added.
Epstein died by suicide on 10 August while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. His death has led to questions surrounding the circumstances of his detention at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, as well as the level of surveillance he was subjected to at the time.
Weinstein’s attorney Arthur Aidala told The Associated Press after Weinstein’s transfer to the hospital that his client was “in pretty good spirits” and “energised”.
Aidala said Weinstein wasn’t handcuffed when they greeted each other Tuesday in a large hospital room as jail officers stood guard outside. He said that Weinstein was looking forward to visitors and it wasn’t clear how long he would be there.
If Weinstein gets discharged from Bellevue, it’s likely he’ll end up at a protective unit at the city’s Rikers Island jail facility. It’ll be a short stay because he’ll be moved to a state prison after sentencing.
While it’s up to the city’s corrections department to decide where inmates are housed, Judge James Burke said he’d ask that Weinstein be placed in the jail’s North Infirmary Command, where he’d have “something tantamount to protective custody.”
The Independent has contacted the New York City Department of Correction for more information.
Additional reporting by agencies
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