She Should Have Hired Jimmy Stewart

Georgie Ann Geyer has an interesting take on Marthagate, in which she
concludes that the domestic diva’s fatal mistake was hiring "fancy New
York lawyers" rather than "some country lawyers who understand the jealousies
and resentments of social status".

Geyer cites as exhibit one the startling reverse-hubris of NOT having
their celebrity client take the stand in her own defense, offering instead
a single witless witness in a twenty-minute micro-defense.

I sat back in my chair in wonderment. What could they possibly be thinking?
Here is this woman, good-looking, blond and obviously multi-talented,
rich as Croesus and "homey" as a haughty Long Island prima
donna, disliked by just about everybody. So for good measure, they
were going to add to the list, especially for the jurors: "This
woman is so much above you that she won’t even get up in court and
explain herself"?

While her choice of legal representation obviously left something
to be desired, we prefer to see Martha’s conviction as the latest
hopeful sign that not even the richest and most famous Americans are
above the law. For far too long the ability to hire slick lawyers and
mobilize "fan" and "press" support has imbued the glitterati with
a virtual Get-Out-of-Jail-Free card.

Anyone doubting Martha’s incarceration is part of a growing trend
to castigate the rich and famous, or that the Judiciary branch has
no sense of humor, need look no further than the prosecution and incarceration
of Tommy Chong for selling bongs over the Internet.

Here’s hoping the newfound enthusiasm for having crack addicts share
cell space with bankers, CEO’s, media magnates and movie stars can
be extended to include politicians who do things like lie to voters,
play bait and switch with educators, first responders, etc., bankrupt
future retirement benefits to funnel money to crooked cronies, or use
the US military to settle family feuds.

Geyer column

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