News Articles and Links

[Sherry]

www.ajc.com/news/content/news/ap/ap_story.html/National/AP.V2193.AP-BRF-Max-Factor-.html
Max Factor Heir Luster Appeals His Case

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP)--An attorney for Max Factor cosmetics heir Andrew Luster, convicted in absentia of raping three women, is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that denied his client the right to appeal.

The petition was filed with the high court this week.

Luster's appeal was rejected under the so-called ``fugitive disentitlement doctrine,'' which generally prohibits people who flee during trial from appealing their sentences and convictions.

Luster, 39, the great-grandson of the cosmetics legend, fled during trial in January and was convicted of raping three women after knocking them out with the date rape drug GHB. A bounty hunter captured him in Mexico five months later, and he is now in prison.

Luster attorney Roger Diamond acknowledged Wednesday that the effort to appeal ``is going to be difficult.'' The California Supreme Court refused to review the case in September.

Luster's attorneys hope to challenge several things on appeal, including the police search of a home where they found videos of some of the rapes.


AP-NY-12-11-03 0849EST

[Sherry]

www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/8161912.htm

Posted on Thu, Mar. 11, 2004

Lawsuit alleges Max Factor heir was coerced into fleeing country

Associated Press


LOS ANGELES - A lawsuit was filed against the former attorney of convicted rapist Andrew Luster and other defendants, claiming the Max Factor heir was coerced to jump bail last year so they could seize his assets.

In the suit filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, bankruptcy trustee John W. Richardson claimed attorney Richard Sherman and several people he hired to work on the case convinced Luster he had to leave the country.

During several meetings at Sherman's office and in court, Luster was told to "flee to Mexico or otherwise he would end up a 'dead man' as a result of the criminal trial," the suit states.

Sherman and Luster allegedly reached an agreement to liquidate Luster's belongings and give the proceeds to his two children. Instead, the defendants sold Luster's house, antiques and other items to an offshore holding company they had established, the suit alleges.

Sherman denied the allegations and pointed out that Luster fired him a month before he fled the country in 2003 as the case was heading to trial.

"These allegations are absurd," Sherman said. "Anybody can allege anything. It's very upsetting to me."

Sherman said he never hired any of the defendants named in the suit.

Luster is serving a 124-year sentence in state prison. He was convicted of raping three women after inviting them to his beach house and knocking them out with the date-rape drug GHB.

Luster fled the country in January 2003, prompting a manhunt that ended in June when a bounty hunter captured him in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.


www.dailynews.com/Stories/0,1413,200~20954~2011814,00.html
Luster sues his former attorney
By Associated Press

A lawsuit was filed against the former attorney of convicted rapist Andrew Luster and other defendants, claiming the Max Factor heir was coerced to jump bail last year so they could seize his assets.

In the suit filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, bankruptcy trustee John W. Richardson claimed attorney Richard Sherman and several people he hired to work on the case convinced Luster he had to leave the country.

During several meetings at Sherman's office and in court, Luster was told to "flee to Mexico or otherwise he would end up a 'dead man' as a result of the criminal trial," the suit states.

Sherman and Luster allegedly reached an agreement to liquidate Luster's belongings and give the proceeds to his two children. Instead, the defendants sold Luster's house, antiques and other items to an offshore holding company they had established, the suit alleges.

Sherman denied the allegations and pointed out that Luster fired him a month before he fled the country in 2003 as the case was heading to trial.

"These allegations are absurd," Sherman said. "Anybody can allege anything. It's very upsetting to me."

Sherman said he never hired any of the defendants named in the suit.

Luster is serving a 124-year sentence in state prison. He was convicted of raping three women after inviting them to his beach house and knocking them out with the date-rape drug GHB.

Luster fled the country in January 2003, prompting a manhunt that ended in June when a bounty hunter captured him in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

[Admin]

Moved from another Board:

Andrew Luster's mother sues attorney over $1M bail

The mother of convicted rapist and Max Factor heir Andrew Luster claims the $1 million bail she posted for his charges was never returned to her because of her lawyer's ineptitude.



Elizabeth Luster is seeking at least $3 million from attorney Joan Lavine for alleged breach of contract, fiduciary duties and legal malpractice for failing to help her recover the cash.


The suit alleges Lavine represented Luster "below the applicable standard of care for other attorneys" when she failed "to recover all or substantially all of the sums deposited ... in connection with the Andrew Luster criminal case."


Lavine says she is "amazed and shocked" by the suit, which she has not seen in its entirety, claiming that she did "a really fabulous and thorough job" for Luster.


In January 2003, the great-grandson of the cosmetics legend fled his Ventura County, Calif., criminal trial on charges that he raped three women after knocking them out with the date rape drug gamma hydroxybutyrate, commonly known as GBH. A judge declared his $1 million bail forfeit.


After he was captured five months later in Mexico by bounty hunter Duane "Dog" Chapman, the lawsuit states, a judge lifted the bail forfeiture and reinstated the funds.


However, when Elizabeth Luster retained Lavine in a bid to recover the money she claims she posted, a judge denied the request, saying she failed to prove that she had been the money's depositor.


The suit, which was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court Friday, alleges that Lavine "failed to present critical evidence, which was readily available to her, substantiating that Mrs. Luster was the source of the funds."


Luster also alleges Lavine didn't advise her of her right to seek an appeal and that she failed to pursue an appeal on her behalf, "notwithstanding her clear authority to do so."


Lavine told Courttv.com that Luster's request was denied on a number of technicalities that she says would have been "intriguing" to pursue in an appeal, except that Luster terminated her services after deciding she did not want to pursue one.


"I couldn't file a notice of appeal for someone I don't work for," Lavine said. "Many clients don't want to accept responsibility for their position, but the judge made factual findings against her, so unless she had appealed, she was bound to that decision."


Lavine said that, during an investigation to determine the origin of the funds, a judge found that Andrew Luster's attorney had given the information for a wire transfer over the phone.


He also initiated the bail return in a phone call with the Ventura County Courthouse, so the judge replaced Elizabeth Luster's name with Andrew Luster's in documents relating to the bond, designating him the depositor of the cash. The money was put toward costs and restitution.


"What's unusual about this case is that there was no receipt for the wire transfer and it wasn't her attorney who made the request to return the bail," Lavine said.


Luster's attorney, Daniel Spitzer, declined to comment on the suit when contacted by Courttv.com.

[Admin]

msnbc.msn.com/id/14839076/
• Famed Bounty Hunter Arrested
Sept. 14: Bounty hunter Duane "Dog" Chapman, his son, and a colleague were arrested in Hawaii. MSNBC-TV's Rita Cosby reports.
MSNBC
HONOLULU - TV reality star Duane "Dog" Chapman and two co-stars on his show were arrested early Thursday in Hawaii on charges of illegal detention and conspiracy in an alleged kidnapping three years ago in Mexico, U.S. Marshals said.

Chapman, 53, his son Leland Chapman, and associate Timothy Chapman were taken into custody in an operation involving 15 officers, said Mark Hanohano, U.S. Marshal for the district of Hawaii. They did not resist arrest, he said.

"All three were very compliant," Hanohano said. "It went down without incident."



Mona K. Wood, a publicist for the star of the popular A&E series "Dog the Bounty Hunter," said Chapman would be "vindicated."

"He arrests the bad guys — and he is definitely not one of them," she said.

The charges stem from Chapman's capture of Max Factor heir Andrew Luster on June 18, 2003 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.


Chapman's capture of Luster, a serial rapist, catapulted the bounty hunter to fame and led to the reality series on the A&E channel.

The three are being held in custody in Honolulu, and bail has not been set. They will face an extradition hearing to Mexico under terms of treaties between the U.S. and Mexico, Credic said.

Charges have been pending against the three since local police in Mexico arrested them shortly after they roped in Luster. They posted bail but never returned to Puerto Vallarta for their court hearing on July 15, 2003.

A U.S. warrant for their arrest was signed by a federal judge in Honolulu on Sept. 13, 2006.

The three were to face a hearing later Thursday in federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry Kurren, Hanohano said. They were to be transported to a federal detention center at the Honolulu airport pending extradition.

"Dog the Bounty Hunter" is A&E's top-rated show.

[Admin]

www.venturacountystar.com/vcs/county_news/article/0,1375,VCS_226_4993615,00.html

Bounty hunter Duane 'Dog' Chapman arrested in Hawaii
Mexico seeks kidnapping charges

By Zeke Barlow, [e-mail]
September 15, 2006

The case that made bounty hunter and reality television star Duane "Dog" Chapman famous came back to bite him Thursday when he was arrested in Hawaii after the Mexican government requested that he be held on kidnapping charges.

His son, Leland Chapman, and associate, Timothy Chapman, — part of the "posse" whose weekly escapades in the bail bondsman world are documented on A&E Television Network's most popular show, "Dog, The Bounty Hunter" — were also arrested for their roles in apprehending convicted rapist and Max Factor heir Andrew Luster in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in 2003.





The Mexican government has long said that the Chapmans broke the law when they detained Luster and have had outstanding charges against him ever since. Bounty hunting is illegal in Mexico.

The men were arrested in Honolulu suburbs without incident and are being held until a detention hearing, likely to come sometime next week.

"He arrests the bad guys, and he is definitely not one of them," said Duane Chapman's publicist, Mona K. Wood.

His wife, Beth Chapman, also a star in the series, said Chapman had left Mexico on the advice of his lawyers, who feared for his safety in the Mexican prison system.

"Duane is a hero, and so are Leland and Tim," Beth Chapman said by telephone. "The only reason that Andrew Luster's victims were able to proceed with their lives is that Duane went down there and made sure this animal ended up behind bars. If Duane has to step up because he did something incorrectly, he will."

Chapman was in bed at 6 a.m. Thursday and had no idea that the United States Marshals Service was seeking him, Beth Chapman said. "I was getting the kids ready for school, and they just came in and bum rushed him in bed."

Chapman, who spends many of his days handcuffing others as cameras film the captures, cooperated with the marshals, officials said.

"He was compliant and respectful, and the arrest was made without incident," said Jay Bieber, a deputy marshal in Honolulu.

Extradition treaties

The State Department received a formal request from the Mexican government that the Chapmans be detained under extradition treaties. The Marshals Service was asked to arrest the three men on a preliminary warrant, said Larry Burtrick with the U.S. Attorney's office in Hawaii. The state is asking that the judge not allow the Chapmans to post bond, he said.

An extradition hearing will follow in which a judge will decide if the charges warrant extradition. The Chapmans can fight that decision.

The three traveled to Mexico in 2003 to collect on a $1 million bond after Luster skipped town in the middle of his trial for drugging and raping three women at his Mussel Shoals home.

When the Chapmans found Luster outside a disco, they grabbed him and caused such a commotion that they caught the attention of locals, who called the police. Officials detained all the men.

Luster was brought back to Ventura County, where he had been tried and found guilty in absentia and sentenced to 124 years in prison.

The Chapmans were detained for three days in Mexico, then set free, then charged with "deprivavation of liberty and criminal association." The government said the Chapmans violated their bail when they returned to the U.S. and didn't sign in with the court in Puerto Vallarta weekly. The government later issued an all-points bulletin for the Chapmans, and the charges have been outstanding ever since. Chapman never collected the bond.

"We're not running away from nothing," Duane Chapman said at the time. "I'm sure the Mexican authorities will decide this to go my way."

However, friends and family members said the unresolved legal tangle was always in the back of Duane Chapman's mind.

"They were afraid something like that would happen," said Tucker Chapman, one of his sons who also works at Da Kine Bail Bonds in Hawaii.

Leonard Padilla, a Ventura bail bondsman who has known Duane Chapman for years, said he thought the Dog had simply pushed the whole ordeal from his head.

"Let's just say sometimes a TV show gives you a heady feeling, and it did not become a priority," Padilla said.

Cult phenomenon

After Chapman made headlines, some bondsmen publicly decried his techniques as unprofessional. With his mullet hairstyle, gritty look and flamboyant nature, Chapman became an overnight cult phenomenon.

Padilla said he suspected other bounty hunters jealous of Chapman's fame put pressure on Mexican officials to arrest him.

Luster's former attorney, Roger Jon Diamond, also said he's heard that bounty hunters have been pressuring the Mexican government to take action, because Chapman's actions gave them a bad name.

"He did not conduct himself properly as far as I am concerned," said Diamond, who said Luster told him that Chapman roughed him up. "On behalf of Andrew Luster, on behalf of anyone who wants justice, I'm very pleased that he is not escaping Mexican justice."

He didn't know if Luster, confined in a Sacramento prison, knew of the arrest.

Others made the argument that if someone from Mexico came to the U.S. and detained someone, the case might be more obvious.

"It is very clear that Mr. Chapman violated the sovereignty and law of Mexico," said Gary Auer, chief of investigations for the Ventura County District Attorney's Office, which issued one of the warrants for Luster. "It's certainly not surprising that they would object to a brazen kidnapping on their streets, and the guy becomes famous in doing so."

However, Chapman's supporters are lining up behind him.

"Dog is a hero to America," said Rick Fass of Powerlock, a company for which Chapman is a spokesman. "Dog captured this horrible guy, and now he's in trouble for it all over again."

— Staff writer Cheri Carlson, The New York Times and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

[Admin]

khon.com/khon/displayStory.cfm?storyID=15239

Duane "Dog" Chapman, Son and Colleague Released From Custody
Andrew Pereira


The world's most famous bounty hunter, his son and an associate posted bail Friday after all three were arrested Thursday for allegedly violating Mexican law.

While leaving the federal courthouse in Honolulu Chapman, the star of the A&E reality show "Dog the Bounty Hunter," spoke to reporters as he was whisked to his car by body guards and his wife Beth.

"The marshals treated us with respect," Chapman said. However the 51 year old also added that "federal prison is terrible."

Chapman, his son Leland, 29, and colleague Timothy Chapman, 41 (no relation) were released after an hour long bail hearing in front of Federal Magistrate Barry Kurren.

Kurren ruled the men are not flight risks and don't pose a danger to the community. The magistrate also rules special circumstances allow for the men's release, among them the fact that the case could take weeks if not months to resolve.

Chapman, his son and colleague were taken into custody by U.S. Marshals Thursday morning for allegedly detaining convicted rapist Andrew Luster illegally in Mexico in June of 2003.

The Mexican government served a warrant for the arrest of the three men which was carried out in Hawaii, where all three men live and work.

When asked if he was fearful of being sent back to Mexico, Chapman responded "no cause we won't go," but then added "we go to get this right."

As Chapman left the courthouse his wife Beth urged him to remain quiet and jostled with cameramen and reporters along the way to their car.

However the star of the reality show did relay a message to his many fans, some who waited nearly all day for his release

"Thank you very much for everybody that loves us," he said. "We love everybody -- thank you very much."

During the court hearing assistant U.S. Attorney Ron Johnson argued all three men should remain in jail. After ruling the three men could be released "forthwith" Kurren set Chapman's bail at $300,000. Bail for his son Leland and associate Timothy Chapman was set at $100,000 each.

"I think it was well reasoned," said Chapman's lead attorney Brook Hart of the judge's decision. "It focused on the facts and it was consistent with fairness and the facts of this case."

Chapman, his son and associate will be allowed to continue their bounty hunting in Hawaii, but are under house arrest when they're not working. They were also ordered to surrender their passports and follow all guidelines set forth by pre-trial services.

The bounty hunters were also ordered to wear electronic monitoring devices around their ankles, even as they film their reality show for the A&E network.

"If there are problems with the monitoring we can readdress them later," said Hart. "We don't have any objection to them."

Meanwhile whether or not the three are extradited back to Mexico for the capture of Luster depends on how the charges are viewed by the U.S. court.

"There's a real question about whether what they're charged with in Mexico, a false imprisonment or restraint of an individual... is a felony that's analogous to American law," Hart said.

Hart believes an extradition hearing could take place before the end of the year. Kurren has scheduled a conference hearing for November 16th when both sides in the case will present evidence including possible witnesses. Hart says some of those witnesses may come from Mexico.

Before leaving the courthouse in what has been a tumultuous two days for the reality TV star Chapman promised to continue to track down bail jumpers.

"This ain't going to deter us from catching criminals," he said before entering a black SUV with his wife and film crew.

[Admin]

www.metnews.com/articles/lust072203.htm
Tuesday, July 22, 2003

Convicted Rapist Andrew Luster Petitions High Court to Revive Appeal

By a MetNews Staff Writer

Convicted rapist Andrew Luster yesterday petitioned the California Supreme Court to revive his appeal, which was dismissed by the Court of Appeal for this district prior to Luster’s capture by bounty hunters and subsequent deportation from Mexico.

Div. Six last month declined to reconsider the dismissal, which it had granted under the fugitive disentitlement doctrine.

The doctrine prevents a litigant from using the court system for his or her benefit while avoiding prosecution or imprisonment, and has been applied to various types of proceedings initiated by a fugitive, including criminal appeals and writ petitions and civil suits unrelated to the criminal proceedings.

Attorneys Roger Jon Diamond of Santa Monica and Kiana Sloan-Hillier of Century City, representing Luster, urged the high court to resolve a conflict between Div. Six’s ruling and that of Div. Four in People v. Kang (2003) 107 Cal.App.4th 43, which allowed a defendant convicted of multiple violent felonies to have his appeal reinstated following extradition from South Korea.

Kang is consistent with California authority, going back more than a century—and with cases in other states—allowing a “grace period” for fugitives to return and have their appeals heard on the merits, the attorneys argued.

Luster was convicted in absentia on 86 counts of sex and drug violations based on evidence, including videotapes made by the defendant himself, that he assaulted unconscious women at his beach house after giving them GHB, a drug that rendered them unconscious.

Ventura Superior Court Judge Ken W. Riley declined to delay proceedings after Luster, who had posted $1 million bail and was on electronically monitored house arrest, disappeared. He was sentenced to 124 years in prison.

Denying an ex-fugitive the right to appeal such a harsh sentence violates due process and constitutes cruel and unusual punishment, the attorneys said.

“In light of the severity of appellant’s sentence,” they wrote, “which is tantamount to life without parole, dismissal of the appeal constitutes a wholly disproportionate sanction for appellant’s conduct in skipping bail, which is punishable with a maximum sentence of three years.”



Copyright 2003, Metropolitan News Company

[Admin]

www.stormfront.org/forum/showthread.php?p=3424005

[Admin]

www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/breaking_news/15528623.htm
Motel owner sues TV bounty hunters
By R. Scott Rappold

The Gazette

(MCT)

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - A Colorado Springs motel owner is suing the stars of the television show "Dog the Bounty Hunter," claiming they assaulted him during filming here, and that the episode has hurt his reputation and business.

Roy Barnes, owner of the Aztec Motel, wants an unspecified amount in damages and for cable network A&E to stop running the episode. He claims in the suit that he receives hate mail and phone calls every time it airs, and it has made him unable to sell the motel.

The show, the most popular on cable network A&E, follows the exploits of Duane "Dog" Chapman, a longtime Colorado bounty hunter now based in Hawaii, and his family.

The bounty hunters could not be reached for comment. Duane and his son Leland Chapman were arrested Thursday in Hawaii and were awaiting extradition to Mexico to face charges related to the capture of a fugitive there in 2003.

They were in Colorado Springs in June 2005, looking for a bail jumper wanted on traffic and other warrants. After being told by an acquaintance he was at the Aztec, they went there, could not find him and got in a confrontation with Barnes, who ordered them to leave the property.

A fight broke out, police were called and Barnes, who had several cuts on his face and head, swelling under his right eye and fractured ribs, twice changed his mind about filing charges, according to police reports.

The 4th Judicial District Attorney's Office later dropped the charge against Leland Chapman after being shown a tape of the incident, though the film crew initially refused to show one to police.

Barnes' lawsuit claims the bounty hunters intentionally caused a confrontation, and that it is a regular procedure on the show for Duane Chapman's wife, Beth, to provoke people to violence.

"They came out here to make a TV show and if they could get some innocent person to beat up for national TV, that was just frosting on the cake," his attorney, Lloyd Korthingy, said Thursday. "The guy wasn't there. They should have left when they were directed to by the owner of the property."

Korthingy said neither the bounty hunters nor the camera crew got Barnes' consent to use his image in the program, and the episode has plagued him since.

"He just can't get rid of it. Every time he turns around, somebody sees it again, and he's embarrassed again. He relives it," he said.

Bobby Brown, a local bail bondsman who invited the bounty hunters here, also is named in the lawsuit. He said they had a legitimate reason to think fugitive Harry Whaley was at the Aztec.

"We were right on his trail the entire time. Nobody said, `Let's go agitate the guy at the Aztec,'" Brown said.

Neither Barnes nor a spokesman for A&E returned messages for comment.

It's not the first legal difficulty for Duane Chapman. His arrest on Mexican charges of illegal detention and conspiracy Thursday stemmed from his capture of Max Factor heir Andrew Luster on June 18, 2003, in Puerto Vallarta. Chapman, his son and another associate jumped bail, and the Mexican government has sought them since.

He has served time in prison for being an accessory to murder, was arrested numerous times in Colorado while working as a bondsman here, and last month was sued by two San Francisco men featured on an episode.

In that episode, the bounty hunters apprehended a man, but they released him after realizing they had the wrong person.

Brown, who brought the bounty hunters back to Colorado Springs this summer to film several more episodes, said people condemn Chapman for his past.

"He bends over backwards to be polite to everybody," Brown said. "He does everything by the book, and he's one of the easiest guys in the world to get along with."

He noted that Barnes shook hands with the bounty hunters after the scuffle, and that he only changed his mind when someone told him he had to file charges in order to later pursue a civil suit, an account confirmed by police reports.

"It's obvious the only reason there is a lawsuit is there is money there," Brown said.

[Admin]

tinseltowncoldcase.blogspot.com/2006/05/my-o.html

[Admin]

Andrew Luster currently represented by:
www.yagmanlaw.net/

[Admin]

www.silha.umn.edu/Winter04/Winter2004.pdf#search=%22andrew%20luster%20innocent%20winter%202004%22

DISSEMINATION OF PRIVATE INFORMATION - CBS
A woman assaulted by convicted rapist Andrew Luster filed a $30 million lawsuit in the Los Angeles Superior
Court against CBS Broadcasting Inc. on Jan. 20, 2004, claiming that the network allegedly illegally obtained and
televised on “48 Hours” an edited video that shows the plaintiff being assaulted while under the influence of a
date rape drug. The video does not show the woman’s face. The suit alleges negligence and invasion of privacy,
according to the Associated Press.
According to The Los Angeles Times, Luster’s mother, Elizabeth Luster, allegedly obtained the video and
provided it to CBS, despite knowing about a court order barring access to the tapes to anyone except the lawyers
involved in the case. The edited video, which showed private scenes depicting the plaintiff known as “Lynn
Doe,” was shown on prime time television on Feb. 19, 2003.
Elizabeth Luster apparently found a box of about 40 videotapes while cleaning out her son’s house in January
2003. She allowed a CBS crew to view the tapes and make copies but was unaware of their contents, defense
attorney Kiana Sloan-Hillier told The Los Angeles Times. “Liz had no idea what these were,” Sloan-Hillier was
quoted as saying. “She was horrified when I told her.”
It was unclear how Andrew Luster obtained the tapes that were sealed by court order in July 2001. “My
understanding of the protective order was that Andrew was not supposed to [have his tapes returned],” Sloan-
Hillier reportedly said. She speculated that Luster may have taken a bag containing the materials from an
anteroom at the courthouse.
Andrew Luster is the great-grandson of cosmetics entrepreneur Max Factor. He was convicted in 2003 of
raping three women in 1996, 1997 and 2000 and is currently serving a 124-year sentence in Monterey County,
Calif.
“This

[Admin]

Shoud be filed under:Couldn't make this up-

www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t65990.html

Lawsuit Spun Off Of O.J. Simpson Case Could Be A Movie
LOS ANGELES (CN) – In a Superior Court lawsuit that reads like a B movie, Olin Hyde claims Andrew Bakalar defamed him and interfered with his project to make a film from a book written by the man accused of being hired to kill Nicole Simpson on behalf of O.J. Simpson. The unpublished book, “We Only Kill Our Friends,” was written by William Wasz, “a violent convicted felon” who wrote it in prison before being released in August 2004, the complaint states. Wasz became partners with Elizabeth Luster, who was to provide $250,000 for the film. They hired Hyde to try to make a “documentary film” from the book. In the course of seeking a producer, Bakalar allegedly horned in and persuaded Luster to fire Hyde. Meanwhile, Wasz, who had “an unfortunate history with illegal narcotics,” died of an overdose after embezzling $150,000 from Luster, the complaint states. Hyde claims Bakalar used the embezzlement as the final straw to induce Luster to break her contract with him. Represented by Ray Gallo, Hyde seeks punitive damages.


"I have been Working with just some "OUTSTANDING" People. According to One of my Sources:
The Olin Hyde/Andrew Bakalar Civil Lawsuit is set to be heard June 26th, 2006, in Santa Monica, California,
In the Lawsuit Papers, It mentions that Robert Kardashian had attempted to hire Bill Wasz to kill Nicole Simpson on behalf of O.J. Simpson.
I received a Copy of the lawsuit of Olin Hyde's. The First page is ALREADY UNREAL, and I mean UNREAL.
From line 3:

"DOES 1 through 10 are unknown to Plaintiff. Plaintiff will amend the Complaint to identify them when their identities are ascertained. Plaintiff is informed and believe's that each of DOES 1 through 10 was the principle, affiliate, agent, servant, employee, employer, co-conspirator, partner, joint-venturer, or co-venturer, of his/her/its co-Defendants and, in doing the things hereinafter alleged, was acting within the course and scope of his/her/its employment, and/or within, his/hers/its authority, within the course and scope of employment , and/or with the permission, ratification, or consent of his/her/its co-Defendant's. Plaintiff is informed and believes that each of does 1 through 10 were in some manner responsible for the below described malfeasance, aiding and abetting thier co-Defendants."

Does everyone Understand what this Means?? "When" and/or "If" NEW Information and/or Evidence Surfaces, Olin Hyde says there 10 More People involved in a/this CONSPIRACY against him. I can think of a Few right now that MAY BE>>>>>>>>>>>>>......................................

Olin Hyde seeks Punitive Damages>>>>HOLY MOLY $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

I believe the Case # is SCO88912---Hard to read.


On Line 27, Part 60 It Reads:

"As a direct and forseeable result of Bakalar's breach, Luster breached her contract with Hyde by canceling the film project and failing to pay the remaining guarenteed contract payments."
In the Lawsuit, it state's that Olin Hyde was paid a few times.

SO, Elizabeth Luster, According to Olin Hyde, BREACHED her Contract with Mr Hyde..."
***************************************************
See the link for remainder of article

[Admin]

This article: thescotsman.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=22242003
Playboy goes on run from rape trial

MARK COLEMAN IN NEW YORK

A MILLIONAIRE playboy and heir to the Max Factor cosmetics fortune is being hunted by police in the United States after he disappeared during his trial on date-rape charges.

Andrew Luster was facing 87 charges including rape, sexual assault and poisoning at a trial which started in California just before Christmas and has scandalised the US.

Jurors have been told Luster, 39, rendered his victims unconscious with date-rape drugs before videotaping his sexual assaults. It has also been suggested that he may have been part of a ring of wealthy bachelors who travel the world carrying out similar attacks and swapping tapes.

A judge granted Luster bail of $1 million (£650,000) and ordered that he be placed under house arrest and electronically tagged during the trial, but Luster has not been seen since a meeting with his probation officer last Friday.

When police were alerted 12 hours later, they found Luster had abandoned his £500,000 beachside bungalow in Mussel Shoals, Santa Barbara, taking away his dog, most of his clothes and a treasured collection of Chumash Indian artefacts in his green pick-up truck.

He failed to turn up at Ventura County Superior Court yesterday, where his trial was due to resume after the Christmas holidays.

Defence lawyers argued for an adjournment, claiming their client may have been kidnapped or involved in an accident, but Judge Ken Riley dismissed the claims and declared him a legal fugitive before ordering the trial to go on in his absence.

Luster faces life in prison if he is convicted of all the charges. .

He is the great-grandson of Max Factor, a Jewish immigrant who fled Poland in 1902 and arrived in the US penniless before building up a global cosmetics empire by selling make-up to Hollywood.

He developed the "pancake" make-up which was plastered on the faces of movie stars in the early days of colour film to prevent them from appearing green on screen.

It was the celebrity endorsement of his products by stars such as Marlene Dietrich and Katharine Hepburn that helped Factor, and his son of the same name, who died in 1996, to turn the small family business into a global company.

The business was eventually sold in 1973, leaving the family with a $480 million (£300 million) fortune.

Luster has been supported by a trust fund since he was a teenager and has barely worked throughout his adult life.

With an estimated fortune of £22 million to his name, most of his time has been spent travelling the world’s premier water sport destinations in Mexico, Indonesia and Australia to indulge his favourite hobby of surfing. Luster has never married, although he has two children by a former girlfriend.

He was arrested in July 2000 after a 21-year-old University of California student complained he had spiked her drink after meeting at a bar and then raped her after taking her home.

When police raided Luster’s home, they found 17 videos and photographs dating back to 1992 which showed him having sex with women who appeared to be unconscious. They also found cocaine and vials of the date-rape drug gamma-hydroxybutyrate, also known as GHB or liquid ecstasy. Many of the women in the videos have not been identified and police believe some of the tapes may have been filmed during Luster’s many trips abroad.

Prosecutors have charged him with sexual attacks on three specific victims and claim he had drugged them with GHB before making videotapes of the assaults.

In one of the videos, titled "Shauna GHB-ing", Luster is seen addressing the camera, saying: "I dream of this. A strawberry blonde passed out on my bed."

The sound of a woman snoring can be heard on the tape.

Shauna, the woman in the video, was 17 at the time it was filmed. She broke down in tears as she told the court she had no memory of the incident. "It was very disgusting to me," Shauna, now 23, said of seeing the tape. "It was like seeing yourself raped in the third person and there is nothing you can do about it."

Luster has always pleaded his innocence and his defence was due to start later this week.

His lawyers were expected to suggest the women in the video tapes had only pretended to be asleep in order to make pornographic films and that they all took part in consensual sex with Luster.

The lawyers were planning to call several of Luster’s former girlfriends to testify that he enjoyed video-taping sex sessions and took GHB with them as an aphrodisiac.

Luster has been under house arrest for more than two years as he awaited trial and has even been prohibited from going surfing from the beach outside his home.

In one of his last interviews before being placed under a legal gagging order, he insisted he was innocent of the charges. "I can’t believe what has happened. It’s all been blown out of proportion," he said. "This was fun, casual sex. My girlfriends will testify that I often used to videotape sex sessions.

"OK, it might be a bit kinky, but it’s not criminal."

And he added: "It’s going to be very embarrassing for my girlfriends having to testify about our sexual relations, but they’ve agreed to help me fight these ludicrous charges."

[Admin]

www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,214484,00.html
Duane 'Dog' Chapman Says Feds Sold Him Out to Mexico in Exchange for Drug Lord
Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Bounty hunter Duane "Dog" Chapman says U.S. officials may have sold him out to Mexico in exchange for a convicted drug lord.

Chapman, the star of A&E's "Dog the Bounty Hunter," was arrested last week by U.S. marshals during an early morning raid on his Hawaii home on charges related to his 2003 capture of fugitive rapist Andrew Luster.

Mexico - where bounty hunting is illegal - claims Chapman jumped bail after being charged with illegally detaining Luster in June 2003.

But Dog and his family have suggested that he may have been nabbed as part of a prisoner exchange between U.S. and Mexican authorities - specifically, Francisco Rafael Arellano Felix, a Mexican drug lord who is alleged to have run the Tijuana drug cartel and is wanted in the U.S.

Felix was transferred into U.S. custody last week - two days before U.S. marshals took Chapman, son Leland and business partner Tim Chapman (no relation) into custody on orders from the Mexican authorities.

The U.S. Department of Justice says Chapman is barking up the wrong tree.
"There is no connection," DOJ spokesman Bryan Sierra told The Post yesterday. "That is just complete speculation from someone who wouldn't know."

A source close to the case says that the timing of Felix's extradition is curious.

"[Chapman] might in good faith think there's a connection, but no facts have been presented to his legal team at this point where we would make that assertion," Chapman's lawyer, Brook Hart, said yesterday.

"As a private citizen under his circumstances, we understand why he's thinking there might be a connection, but at this point, whether there is one or isn't one is not terribly important."

A new special about last week's arrest will air tonight (10 p.m.) on A&E.

Felix, who has a lengthy rap sheet - including charges ranging from dealing cocaine to murder - spent 10 years behind bars in a Mexican prison.

He was supposed to be released in 2004, but was held pending a final resolution of a U.S. extradition request.

Chapman, who is out on $300,000 bail, said on yesterday's "Today" show that if he goes to prison in Mexico, he will be killed by inmates avenging the thousands of fleeing felons he's brought to justice.

"I won't last two days," he said.