Results tagged “brookeastor”

Three years ago Brooke Astor's grandson Philip Marshall accused his father, Anthony Marshall, of elder abuse, leading to numerous charges. Now, with his father was found guilty, it looks like he and his twin brother will lose out on $10 million each. The NY Times reports that a codicil to Astor's will that Anthony Marshall allegedly manipulated gave him access to $60 million immediately—and he intended to leave a third to his sons. That codicil will probably be rejected but the younger Marshall doesn't seem to mind "I’ve always felt that this money didn’t belong to us. To take money that our grandmother intended to give to charity is like taking blood money."

The jurors in the trial about the late Brooke Astor's estate continue to offer glimpses of what the six-month (!!!) marathon was like. They found Astor's 85-year-old son Anthony Marshall guilty of grand larceny—and the decision was not taken lightly. The jury forewoman Kristina Jezycki told the Daily News, "It's difficult to have a World War II veteran in this position. I have always respected my elders, so I find it very difficult to handle."

With Anthony Marshall found guilty of looting the $200 million estate of his mother—the late philanthopist Brooke Astor—the tabloids are reveling in the drama of it all. Heck, the Post goes for the gusto with the headline "Tony's Miss Piggy skewered in Astor verdict," referring to Marshall's wife Charlene.

Some of the jurors who endured the 19-week-long trial surrounding the late Brooke Astor's estate explained their decision to find Astor's 85-year-old son guilty of grand larceny. Yvonne Fernandez, 52, said of Anthony Marshall, whom prosecutors said was driven to loot his mother's fortune for his wife Charlene, "It sort of reminded me, when I was in Brooklyn years ago and there was a blackout, and the lower-income people were stealing refrigerators and TVs, and they felt that was due to them," adding, "We all have our flaws, and you know, of course, the flaw here was greed."

After a 19 week long trial, a jury has found Anthony Marshall guilty on one count of first-degree grand larceny related to stealing the $200 million fortune of his late mother, the philanthropist Brooke Astor. The NY Times notes, "Barring an appeal, the jury’s verdict means that [Marshall], an 85-year-old war veteran who fought at Iwo Jima, can be sentenced to anywhere from 1 to 25 years behind bars."

Given that these jurors have had to sit through five months of testimony in the trial involving Brooke Astor's fortune, is it any wonder that nerves are seriously frayed? On Monday, the jury sent the judge a note, "Due to heated argument, a juror feels personally threatened by comments made by another juror... With regards to her personal safety, she wishes to be dismissed anonymously," and then later that day, one juror was seen "sobbing."

At first, the trial over Brooke Astor's estate was an exciting glimpse into society; months later, it's just boring. The NY Times reports that jury deliberations are forcing the defendants (including Astor's son Anthony Marshall) and lawyers to kill time: "Mr. Marshall, 85, has been alternating between reading French literature by the likes of Honoré de Balzac and dozing off on the bench. At one point last week, Mr. Marshall lay asleep on a wooden bench in the hallway outside the courtroom with a newspaper over his face." And a defense lawyer said, "Thank God for Wi-Fi."

Since he told jurors—way back in late March— that the trial over Brooke Astor's will would take 8-10 weeks, Justice Kirke Bartley Jr. had to apologize to jurors last month for the trial's slow pace: So far, the case has gone on for 17 weeks—and the prosecution is only wrapping up today! Bartley even had to cancel his own vacation, according to the NY Times. Prosecutors contend Astor's son and a lawyer plotted to take more of her estate while she was ailing and NYU law professor Stephen Gillers explains, "This is not a smoking-gun case, this is not an eyewitness case. This is a circumstantial case. The challenge is enormous to show a woman’s state of mind five and a half years ago when she’s no longer here." But defense lawyer Benjamin Brafman points out, "It would appear to me that the case is being overtried by the district attorney’s office. The question of competence does not necessarily, in my view, require the testimony of every human being who came into contact with Brooke Astor in the latter years of her life." You know, if the trial wrapped up faster, maybe the jury forewoman wouldn't have been attacked on the subway!

We knew that being on a jury for the Astor trial was hard work, considering that it's been going on for months (jury selection was back in March-April!!), there have been tons of witnesses (apparently 14,000 transcription pages worth) and Astor's son and co-defendant, Anthony Marshall, has had many health issues. But now we find out it can even be dangerous work: The jury's forewoman was headed home from court when she was attacked by a knife-wielding stranger on an uptown 4 train!

The Astor trial, which features the late philanthropist's son accused of looting his mother's fortune, has been going on for weeks—but that's not a problem for Judy Natkins and another woman named Gladys, who have been attending almost every day of the trial. The NY Times casts a spotlight on these devotees of the judicial system: "Gladys, who said that the trial has been a needed distraction after several deaths in her family, acknowledged she was among those curious about the celebrity witnesses, saying she paid particular attention to 'how they dressed, how they spoke, how they looked.' She confided: 'Barbara Walters looked terrific. Henry Kissinger looked fat.'" On one day, Natkins even joined reporters in questioning one witness, "Have you ever considered writing a book about your experience?" Gladys has attended the trials of Joel B. Steinberg, John Gotti Jr., and Robert Chambers while Natkins has been to Martha Stewart's trial and, in order to "see what evil looked like," spent a day at the trial of the police officers accused of abusing Abner Louima. As for the slow pace of the trial, the women are sitting tight, though Gladys said, "I’m leaving as soon as the Gotti trial starts up."

Anthony Marshall, the 85-year-old son of the late philanthropist Brooke Astor, fell in a bathroom, hitting his head, in the courthouse where he is on trial for stealing from his mother's fortune. The Daily News reports, "The accident happened around 11:30 a.m. Some 45 minutes later, paramedics were still trying to treat Marshall. His wife, Charlene, was also inside the men's room comforting him." His lawyer said, "He was dizzy and fell. He fell down in the stall and hit his head." The Post, which notes that Marshall requested to see a doctor being he wasn't feeling well yesterday, has a sad picture of Marshall wearing an oxygen mask and sitting on a gurney.

During the latest day in the trial of Anthony Marshall, the late philanthropist Brooke Astor's son, a lawyer who represented both son and mother testified that Marshall diligently crunched the numbers to calculate what his wife would get, in the case of his death. Because Astor despised daughter-in-law Charlene Marshall that she explicitly told lawyer-turned-witness Henry Christensen that she didn't want to leave anything to her. Christensen said that Anthony Marshall gave him a 2001 memo, titled, "Concern: My ability to provide sufficient financial assistance to Charlene upon my death after distributions and expenses, including taxes." But Christensen said that in spite that Charlene owned their $2 million apartment plus had a $1 million trust fund (that would earn $115,000/year in interest) set up by her husband, Marshall was "concerned she wasn't going to have anything." Marshall is accused of forging his mother's signature on a will and asking her to sign another will—while she was in mental decline—to give him $60 million meant for charitable groups.

Rub the war criminal's belly three times and make a wish! Yes, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger took a little stumble this morning as he left the Manhattan State Supreme Court building. He had been testifying in the trial of Brooke Astor's son Anthony Marshall and his lawyer Francis Morrissey; the men are accused of looting Astor's fortune.

The continuing trial over whether or not Anthony Marshall and a lawyer essentially stole the fortune of Marshall's mother—legendary philanthropist Brooke Astor—hit the waterworks yesterday when Marshall's twins son testified against him. The Post said during testimony, Marshall, 84, "hunched forward at the defense table" and "held his forehead in his trembling right hand" while, during a break, the NY Times saw him and his third wife, Charlene Marshall, "sat red-faced on a bench in the hallway. Tears trickled from their eyes."

A judge ruled that a 2001 incident where Charlene Marshall complained about mother-in-law Brooke Astor won't be heard by the jury. Marshall's husband, Anthony, is Astor's only son and is on trial for allegedly forging her will to gain $60 million. Astor's social secretary recounted Charlene that ranted, "She's f---ing killing him!"—referring to Astor and her husband—"If he dies before she does, I get nothing!" Prosecutors hoped to enter the statements into the trial, because they says it points to why Anthony Marshall would have wanted to take his mother's money—to sate his wife's greed. The Post reports that prosecutor Joel Seidemann explained it as, "It's all for Charlene. She's in the mix. It's unavoidable. They can say there is no elephant in the room. But there is an elephant in the room." The Daily News' Joanna Molloy uses her column to wonder why the trial is suddenly about Charlene Marshall, the woman who left her minister husband for the heir of Brooke Astor. A friend of Charlene Marshall's tells Molloy, "[Charlene] is an extremely compassionate woman. She's active at St. James Church. She brings Communion to shut-ins ... She listens. She helps people in pain ... She's not a golddigger at all." Brooke Astor didn't much like Charlene, FWIW.

As they have since the beginning of the trial, prosecutors continued to present witnesses who say that Brooke Astor's mental faculties were on the decline in her later years. Astor's son Anthony Marshall, along with his lawyer Francis X. Morrissey, is accused of changing her will and forging her signature on a codicil, which gave him more money, and selling her artwork (allegedly telling her she was broke). Broadway and film producer John Hart testified that in spite of Astor meeting actor Matthew Broderick many times, she didn't recognize him at a post-Producers dinner; he recalled the actor saying, "Brooke, I’m Matthew. You love me. What did you think of the play?” Hart also said that during a 2003 visit with her, she told him, "I am gaga," apparently recognizing her problems. Hart added that Astor seemed to agree with Andrew Carnegie's belief that no good came from inherited wealth (the Rockefellers being the exception).

If prosecutors are accusing you of being a horrible son and swindling your mother's fortune by forging her signature in a will, what do you do on Mother's Day: Do you stay home and rest up your 84-year-old body for the trial or do you head to your mother's grave to pay your respects? The NY Post went to the home of Anthony Marshall, son of legendary philanthropist Brooke Astor, and ultimately surmised that he "didn't visit his mom Brooke Astor's grave on Mother's Day yesterday because he was too busy taking orders from the woman who replaced her -- his accused money-grubbing wife." Charlene Marshall first said that Marshall wasn't there, only for Marshall to appear in his nightshirt "looking frail." His wife told him to leave, told the reporter that he had to rest (Marshall is on trial for grand larceny and conspiracy for the changes to his mother's will) and explained they couldn't answer any questions, per lawyer's orders. The Post reports that there were "no new flowers" on Astor's grave; previously the paper criticized the disrepair at the site.

Charlene Marshall, married to Brooke Astor's son Anthony Marshall, broke down on her way to her husband's trial this morning. The Post reports, "The tears began as photographers descended on Charlene Marshall as she walked into Manhattan Supreme Court with her husband Anthony, 84." The Daily News' version: "The waterworks started when photographers descended on Charlene Marshall as she walked into the Manhattan courthouse on the arm of her husband, Anthony." Both tabloids say she told photographers, "Oh, please don't," when they took pictures of her (the News has one of her looking red-eyed and looking rather miserable).

The word that rhymes with rich has made its way into the trial of Brooke Astor's son. Anthony Marshall, the legendary philanthropist's only son, is accused of forging his mother's signature on a 2004 codicil to her will, giving him outright control of $60 million, an amount Astor had earlier intended for charities. Prosecutors continued to argue that Astor, who died in 2007 at age 105, would never have done that if she were of sound mind, given her distaste for Marshall's third wife, Charlene, who left her minister husband for Marshall. Astor's ear doctor Kevin O'Flaherty testified today, recalling a conversation he had with Astor in 2000, "She was speaking about the (seating) arrangements for dinner...[She said] Mr. Marshall and his wife were going to be there because he liked socializing with her friends. She mentioned she'd rather have Boysie and Girlsie, her dogs, there than her son and that b-i-t-c-h." O'Flaherty, apparently too much of gentleman to say the word, confirmed that Astor actually uttered it. He also said that Astor's mental facilities were "failing" in 2004; prosecutors contend Astor's decline began in 1995.

Chronicler of high society Louis Auchincloss testified yesterday in the trial of famed philanthropist Brooke Astor's son, Anthony Marshall. Auchincloss, who had been friends with Astor for 60 years, supported the prosecution's argument that Astor was senile in her later years. The NY Times reports Auchincloss cited a 2001 lunch where Astor didn't recall him—"It was a great shock to me because she didn’t know me. She knew she ought to know me"—as well as a 1998 discussion where Astor claimed to know Edith Wharton, "This was astonishing to me. I’d written a biography of Edith Wharton. She had told me, which I knew to be true, that she’d never met Edith Wharton. She could have, but I happened to know she hadn’t." The prosecution contends that Astor was not of sound mind when Marshall and a lawyer had her sign a codicil to her will in 2004, which gave Marshall $60 million outright, instead of getting a percentage of trust money.

The trial of Brooke Astor's son Anthony Marshall is a glimpse into high society. Well, a glimpse of high society amid accusations of elder abuse, swindling money from a senile woman, and more. The Post reports that one of the the prosecution's exhibits is "a remarkably detailed scale model of Brooke Astor's 16th-floor apartment overlooking Park Avenue at 72nd Street." The model's rooms appear to emulate the actual decoration of Astor's co-op, which is on the market for $29 million, including parquet-type floors and wallpaper. The Post adds, "You can almost smell the dog urine on the infamous Blue Room couch."

The trial of famed philanthropist Brooke Astor's son has started with opening statements. Prosecutors say that Astor's only son Anthony Marshall, along with lawyers, conspired to swindle $60 million from an increasingly debilitated Astor through a codicil to her will while the defense claims Astor wanted to give her son the money all along. Defense attorney Frederick Hafetz even tried to deflate the perception of Astor's charitable largesse, saying she only donated in order to become powerful: "She used that money to position herself in the highest echelons of New York Society [and to become] one of the greatest benefactors... Make no mistake [she used the money] to position herself."

The way a list of potential witnesses for the Brooke Astor estate trial reads, it might just be the trial of the century. Names include—for both the prosecution and defense—Henry Kissinger, Barbara Walters, David Rockefeller, Annette de La Renta, Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, New York Public Library president Paul LeClerc, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum. One potential juror told the Daily News, "If you bring Henry Kissinger and Kofi Annan and Barbara Walters in here, the whole thing is surreal." Prosecutors say that Astor's son Anthony Marshall tried to steal his mother's estate by forcing his senile mother to change her will. And Carter told the NY Times he regularly had lunch with the late philanthropist, "I assume they’re going to want to ask my opinion about what I thought her mental state was in the last 10 years of her life," and said of being on the list of luminaries, "I feel very privileged. I think it’s just an accident."

As the NY Times reports, the case of Brooke Astor's son, Anthony Marshall, is "less than halfway through a painstakingly long jury selection process, made especially difficult by the fact that the trial is expected to last two to three month." Marshall, 82, is accused of trying to steal his ailing mother's estate, a charge that rocked high society. Potential jurors are asked if they know who Brooke Astor is, as well as their opinions of the wealthy (the Daily News notes, "Do you have a problem with rich people? If you do, you may be able to get out of serving as a juror") and whether they have wills. Marshall's attorney is "concerned" about the many articles written about the case and hopes jurors can "separate what they have read from the evidence." The Post witnessed one person outside the courthouse yell at Marshall, "Hey, that was his mother's money! That was his mother's money!"

The judge presiding over the trial of legendary philanthropist Brooke Astor's son told potential jurors to go off the grid if they are selected. Supreme Justice Kirke Bartley said, "I understand there is a temptation to review [news] stories. You are not to conduct research...particularly on the Internet... Blogging, BlackBerrys, whatever," are not allowed. The lawyer for Anthony Marshall, who is accused of conspiring to take millions from his ailing mother's estate, said, "There have been reports from all over about jurors Twittering and blogging." In the meantime, the 82-year-old defendant was using a cane: "I’m a little wobbly, that’s why I’ve got the cane. Sometimes I can get around without it, but when I do something like this, I really need a cane.”

Jury selection for the trial of legendary philanthropist Brooke Astor's only son starts today. Anthony Marshall, 85, oversaw his mother's estate and has been accused of swindling as well as mistreating his ailing mother. According to the Times, much of the case surrounds whether Astor was competent when she signed a 2004 codicil to her will, giving Marshall her estate; prosecutors will apparently cite a 2000 letter written by Marshall that "in which he told vivid anecdotes about her fragile mental state." The Post is excited for the trial (perhaps hoping for another "Bad Heir Day"), which is "expected be a two-month-long trial, which will be rich with boldface names and palace intrigue and focus a spotlight on Astor's painful final years." However, it's unclear how many boldface names will testify; a source told the Daily News, "David Rockefeller and Henry Kissinger want out of this whole matter. They are just not interested. They never expected it to go this far. It's Annette [de la Renta, Astor's friend] who is out for blood." Marshall, a former Marine, has called the charges against him a "malicious jihad."

Over a year after Brooke Astor's death, journalist Meryl Gordon has published a book, Mrs. Astor Regrets, about the battle over the philanthropist's care and finances during her final years. The Post excerpted some juicy parts last month, but this Janet Maslin's review of the biography offered this interesting insight: "Many of those interviewed seem tone-deaf to their own gushing excesses and overwhelmed by displays of largess. About Ms. De la Renta’s literally gilded childhood: 'Dinner guests still recall the stacks of gold Krugerrands used as table décor and given away as party favors.'” And the saga surrounding Brooke Astor's legacy is far from over: Her son Anthony Marshall was indicted on criminal charges relating to how his mother's will was handled (believed to be forged to benefit him) last year.

We've been following the fallout over the late Brooke Astor's will and estate for a while, but today's in-depth article in the NY Times about lawyer Francis Morrissey's numerous clients who put him in their wills is pretty damning. Morrissey was indicted (along with Astor's son Anthony Marshall) on charges if trying to, essentially, loot Astor's estate last month.

Anthony Marshall has not only been indicted for alleged criminal mishandling of his mother Brooke Astor's estate - he's being called a "STONE COLD HEIR" by the Post for not properly maintaining his mother's grave. Ouch! A public spat with his own son over Astor's care led to an ultimate court settlement where Marshall ceded guardianship of Astor and her estate to JP Morgan Chase and Astor's friend Annette de la Renta. But after Astor...

Anthony Marshall, the son of the late Brooke Astor, might have chosen a different lawyer if he suspected that he'd be eventually accused of looting his mother's estate. Or perhaps Francis X. Morrissey was the perfect man for the job. Papers are reporting today that Marshall's lawyer has a long history of profiting from soon-to-be-deceased clients. He was in court yesterday, arriving handcuffed, but leaving free on bail.It would seem to be the darkest moment...