Donald Zieben-Hood smiled broadly during a court appearance in New York after being brought from Rikers Island over allegations of violence against his husband, model Jacob Zieben-Hood, whose death in their Harlem flat has been ruled a homicide.
Zieben-Hood, 40, has not been charged with Jacob’s death. He is facing a series of violent charges linked to alleged abuse against the 34-year-old, who was found dead in the couple’s apartment in August 2025.
He appeared before Judge Cori Weston at Manhattan Criminal Court for a control hearing, having been escorted into the courtroom by three officers with his hands cuffed behind his back.
Wearing a light beige jumper, beige trousers and black Puma trainers, Zieben-Hood appeared freshly groomed, with a new haircut and a fully grown-out moustache.
After briefly scanning the courtroom, he showed little emotion before breaking into a wide grin as he sat beside his two lawyers. He remained silent while the judge and his legal representatives discussed the next stages of the case.
Another hearing has been scheduled for November 4, when the court is expected to consider a date for the trial. Zieben-Hood was then taken back to a holding cell.
Jacob Zieben-Hood’s death
Jacob was found slumped over a toilet in the bathroom of the couple’s home on West 146th Street, with stab wounds to his leg and an injury to his head.
Police described a chaotic scene, with blood smeared across furniture, walls, floors and counters. Court documents say the couple had been celebrating their 10-year anniversary the night before, when an argument became violent.
Jacob’s death was ruled a homicide in October last year. The city’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said he had suffered multiple blunt and sharp-force injuries to his legs and other parts of his body.
Acute alcohol and lorazepam intoxication, along with chronic alcohol use, were listed as contributing factors.
Prosecutors allege Jacob made a desperate call to his father on July 31, hours before his death, warning that his husband was “coming after him”. He also sent photographs showing fresh injuries to his face and head, as well as a large bleeding wound on his leg.
Police returned to the apartment at about 4am the following morning and found Jacob dead. Zieben-Hood was arrested at the scene and has remained in custody at Rikers Island.
Allegations of violence
Court filings describe a history of alleged violence between the couple. In the year before Jacob’s death, Zieben-Hood allegedly breached several protection orders by repeatedly entering his husband’s apartment to threaten and attack him.
Police allege that in February 2025 he strangled Jacob during an assault that left him almost unconscious. In June, he allegedly returned with a knife, prompting a further restraining order.
Friends said Jacob had once been a lively and outgoing fitness model but became increasingly withdrawn as the relationship deteriorated.
Jacob Paulson, a friend who met him in 2013, said: “I had no contact with him, and I just wanted him to be happy. I was hoping that he was.”
Another friend, Joshua Baker, said Jacob began avoiding him after starting his relationship with Zieben-Hood in 2015. “He stopped answering calls,” Baker said. “He even blocked me at one point.”
