Mar 7, 2007 5:58 am US/Eastern
Judge Limits Defendants In Civil Wiretapping Suits
Ruling Breaks Logjam In Case Against Private Eye Who Spied On Stars
LOS ANGELES (AP) ―
A judge has moved to break a legal logjam in the Hollywood wiretapping case by ruling that no new defendants can be added to the 13 civil lawsuits already filed against private eye Anthony Pellicano and others.
More than 20 attorneys packed a downtown courtroom for the hearing Tuesday, illustrating the furor that could accompany the civil trials.
Many of the lawsuits seek unspecified damages while accusing Pellicano and others of invasion of privacy, negligence and infliction of emotional distress.
Prosecutors contend in a 111-count criminal indictment that Pellicano illegally wiretapped the phones of Hollywood stars such as Sylvester Stallone and bribed police officers to run the names of more than 60 people, including comedians Garry Shandling and Kevin Nealon, through government databases.
The information gathered was used to get dirt for threats, blackmail and in some cases to secure a tactical advantage in litigation, prosecutors alleged.
Pellicano has pleaded not guilty.
Attorneys in the civil cases want to begin deposing witnesses soon, even though they believe the trials might not begin until next year.
"We want to start moving this giant battleship forward as quickly as we can," attorney Brian Kabateck said.
The ruling by Superior Court Judge Peter Lichtman stopped the addition of defendants but didn't forbid the filing of new lawsuits.
The judge scheduled a March 29 hearing to consider delaying the civil trials until Pellicano and five other defendants are tried on criminal charges of wiretapping and conspiracy.
Fourteen people have been charged in the case, with seven pleading guilty so far. Defense attorneys in the criminal case are still sifting through evidence in preparation for the Aug. 22 trial.
(© 2007 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
