Joan Rivers Angers Ohio Women Held Captive

The women freed almost a year ago after a decade of captivity in a Cleveland home aren't happy about Joan Rivers joking about their ordeal. Lawyers for two of the women say Rivers should apologize for saying, "Those women in the basement in Cleveland had more space" when talking about reality show living arrangements on the Today show yesterday, the Plain Dealer reports. The attorneys for Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus say it is "shocking and disappointing" that Rivers would "say something this hurtful on national television."

"Our clients are strong, private women who have endured unwanted and often painful media attention for quite some time," the lawyers say in a statement. "They now have to endure this, which is a new low, and we believe a sincere apology is warranted." A lawyer for the third captive, Michelle Knight, could not be reached, and Rivers' publicist has declined to comment, the AP reports. The women's kidnapper, Ariel Castro, hanged himself in prison last year just a few weeks into his life-plus-1,000 years sentence. (More Amanda Berry stories.)