Jury Mulls Whether Private Investigator Wiretapped Celebrities
Jurors in Los Angeles began deliberations yesterday in the prosecution of private eye Anthony Pellicano, accused of illegally gathering information and wiretapping celebrities such as Garry Shandling and Keith Carradine.
Charges against Pellicano include racketeering, conspiracy, wire fraud, identity theft and bribery, the Los Angeles Times reports. Four co-defendants are accused of aiding Pellicano, the so-called private investigator to the stars.
Prosecutors claimed Pellicano used illegally gathered information to help his clients gain an edge in civil and criminal cases, the New York Times reports.
Pellicano represented himself in the federal trial. In closing arguments he said he did not run a criminal enterprise and was not a “well-connected and very well-paid thug,” the Washington Post reports. Instead he described himself as a “lone ranger” who helped his wealthy clients.
In his closing, prosecutor Daniel Saunders described Pellicano’s approach to the justice system as “get the dirt, sling the mud, dirty them up, win any way you can.”
