Onetime Smurfs owner, lawyer Stuart Ross is in jail because of an alleged plot to extort over $11 million from his wealthy son-in-law David Blitzer. New York Daily News reports that his New York criminal defense attorney, Mr. Matthew Myers has said that Stuart Ross can't afford his $200,000 bail.
Stuart Ross allegedly thought he could get some money from his son-in-law by threatening to ruin his reputation. We all know that in-laws can sometimes be considered outlaws, but this father in law's alleged actions are a little obscene.
His New York criminal defense lawyer will have his work cut out for him because according to court documents, Stuart Ross didn't even spare his own daughter, Allison Blitzer. He allegedly told her that he hoped that her fetus dies while she was pregnant. His daughter also claims that he told her that the tombstone "should be carved with a vile obscenity."
I don't think Papa Smurf can salvage that relationship with his wisdom or magical brews.
It is claimed that when the threats against both the son-in-law and daughter got worse, Ross offered to leave them alone if they gave him $5.5 million. New York Daily News says that Judge Bonnie Wittner wrote: "These threats escalated to a point where Ross, through his attorney, defendant Jackson, told Blitzer's attorney, Roger Stavis, that for $5.5 million, Ross would not try to visit his daughter or grandchildren and would stop harassing Blitzer and contacting his business."
In the meantime, Ross tried to garner some sympathy from the State Supreme Court. He told Judge Wittner: "I have leukemia. Almost every month I was in the hospital."
He is planning to represent himself at trial. A hearing is scheduled for June 28.
While he is a lawyer, it is still tricky to be a pro se defendant. Even Judge Wittner said: "You want to represent yourself. I know you're a lawyer. You know the risks."
Don't take risks if you find yourself criminally charged. A good New York criminal defense attorney often knows things that a pro se defendant may not know in order to mitigate criminal charges. For more information, please visit our Related Resources.
Related Resources:
- Extortion (FindLaw)
- Call A New York Criminal Defense Lawyer (FindLaw)
- Letterman Extortion Case: Joe Halderman Enters Guilty Plea (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice Blog)
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