Actress Jessica Mann, who accused Harvey Weinstein of raping her in 2013, sharply responded to Weinstein’s claim in court on January 29 that Rikers Island is a “hellhole.”
Mann stated, “The irony of Weinstein begging for privilege to be released out of his ‘hellhole’ is not lost on me. The hell he put in my hole will last a lifetime.”
On that morning, Weinstein appeared in Manhattan Supreme Court, requesting Judge Curtis Farber to expedite the start of his retrial for the 2020 conviction on rape and sexual assault charges, citing his deteriorating health.
Weinstein, who was in a wheelchair, pleaded with the judge, saying, “I can’t hold on. I’m begging for you to move the date…I want to be out of this hellhole.”
The retrial is set to begin on April 15, but Weinstein, diagnosed with leukemia last year, expressed he “won’t be there” if he remains on Rikers Island.
He requested the trial to start a week earlier, on April 7, stating, “I want this to be over with.” He added, “Every day is a struggle…Every day is a struggle in my heart.”
In 2020, Weinstein was found guilty of raping Mann in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013 and sexually assaulting another woman in 2006.
That conviction was overturned last year when the New York Court of Appeals determined he did not receive a fair trial due to the testimony of women not involved in the case.
Weinstein, 72, was also indicted in September on new sex crime charges involving three different victims in New York City, and Judge Farber denied a motion from Weinstein’s attorneys to dismiss that indictment.
Additionally, Weinstein was convicted in California in 2022 for raping an actress in a Beverly Hills hotel.

Olekanma Favour is a resourceful, self-motivated, and result-driven writer with a passion for crafting compelling narratives and insightful content. She loves tackling complex topics and weaving engaging stories.
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