Wavering Client Finally Pleads in John Cusack Stalking Case
A plea deal that would have saved a woman accused of stalking actor John Cusack from further jail time almost fell through, after she told a Los Angeles judge that her counsel had used scare tactics to coerce her into agreeing to it.
But as 33-year-old Emily Leatherman was about to be led from the courtroom by bailiffs she shouted, “I want to take it,” apparently saving the day for the plea bargain after all, according to news accounts by the BBC and Associated Press.
Judge Susan Speer accepted Leatherman’s no contest plea today, the AP states. It calls for her to serve 5 years of probation and stay away from Cusack for a decade. She is also required to get psychiatric counseling.
Leatherman has been in custody since she was arrested outside Cusack’s home earlier this year, and could have been sentenced to as much as four years in state prison if she had been convicted of stalking him.
