Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Martha Stewart Expected Back in Court
Aired November 18, 2003 - 08:18 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Here in New York City today, Martha Stewart is expected back in court for a pretrial hearing. Meanwhile, in California, Scott Peterson's preliminary hearing drags on yet again.
For more on these developments, Jeff Toobin stops back in both these cases -- good morning, Jeff.
Nice to see you.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Hi.
HEMMER: The prosecution says Martha Stewart talked up her company. They say you can't do that. That's the charge, right?
TOOBIN: They say it's securities fraud. By peddling a false story of why you sold your stock, that is, in addition to obstruction of justice, lying to investigators, it is the separate crime of securities fraud by defrauding investors talking up your stock on false pretenses.
HEMMER: So they're saying she should have kept her mouth shut, publicly at least, at that point?
TOOBIN: Well...
HEMMER: The defense is saying listen, she's got a right to free speech.
TOOBIN: A right to free speech...
HEMMER: What are you saying?
TOOBIN: A right to different herself. This was not aimed at investors, this was simply exercising her right to explain her own conduct. A very interesting legal issue. It's a novel theory by the prosecutors that this is securities fraud. I think she...
HEMMER: A novel theory?
TOOBIN: Very much so. I think she has a real chance of getting that one count tossed out of the case.
HEMMER: OK. So on this charge today, anyway, there's a rub between your first amendment right to basically have your first -- your right to free speech, right, first amended, as opposed to being under investigation right now by the Feds? TOOBIN: And you have no right -- the prosecution's theory is you have a right to free speech but you have no right to mislead investors about your own conduct, thus getting them to buy or keep your stock under false pretenses. The trial is in January, the hearing today.
HEMMER: You've been kind of wishy on this whole thing. Squishy, I should say.
TOOBIN: I've -- squishy, look, I can be accused of being in the tank for Martha Stewart. The accusation has been made. It should be out there on the table.
HEMMER: Yes. Let's talk about this hair in the Scott Peterson case.
TOOBIN: OK.
HEMMER: How critical is it? One hair on a pair of pliers could mean what?
TOOBIN: The idea is it is a tie putting Laci Peterson's hair in this boat, which prosecutors will claim that Scott used to dispose of the body in San Francisco Bay, where, of course, she was found. It is incriminating for that reason. It is not as incriminating as it might be because they were married. There is transference of hair from husband to wife. It happens all the time. The fact that her wife -- her hair might be found in that boat is certainly not as incriminating if this were a case of stranger murder, where there'd be no reason for them to be any connection between the two.
HEMMER: We all know, America all knows she was eight months pregnant at the time. You think some testimony yesterday with what was given in terms of court about when the fetus may have actually died, the fact that it was together with the woman.
TOOBIN: Right. We want to try not to be too graphic about this, but one of the issues that was raised was somehow the fetus murdered separately in some sort of cult theory? That was one of the theories that was being floated out there, apparently by the defense.
The prosecution really shot that down by saying that the -- that Laci and the fetus essentially died together. So there was no, there was no separate murder of the fetus. There was some plastic found around the fetus's neck. The expert who testified yesterday said he thought that was just river flotsam, it had nothing to do with the cause of death.
HEMMER: Meanwhile, one of America's longest preliminary hearings looks like it might be winding down soon. We shall see.
TOOBIN: You know, think about the entire 130 witnesses in the sniper case all testified before -- well before California could get through even a preliminary hearing in the...
HEMMER: That says something, yes.
TOOBIN: Two different legal systems.
HEMMER: Thanks, Jeff.
TOOBIN: OK.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 18, 2003 - 08:18 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Here in New York City today, Martha Stewart is expected back in court for a pretrial hearing. Meanwhile, in California, Scott Peterson's preliminary hearing drags on yet again.
For more on these developments, Jeff Toobin stops back in both these cases -- good morning, Jeff.
Nice to see you.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Hi.
HEMMER: The prosecution says Martha Stewart talked up her company. They say you can't do that. That's the charge, right?
TOOBIN: They say it's securities fraud. By peddling a false story of why you sold your stock, that is, in addition to obstruction of justice, lying to investigators, it is the separate crime of securities fraud by defrauding investors talking up your stock on false pretenses.
HEMMER: So they're saying she should have kept her mouth shut, publicly at least, at that point?
TOOBIN: Well...
HEMMER: The defense is saying listen, she's got a right to free speech.
TOOBIN: A right to free speech...
HEMMER: What are you saying?
TOOBIN: A right to different herself. This was not aimed at investors, this was simply exercising her right to explain her own conduct. A very interesting legal issue. It's a novel theory by the prosecutors that this is securities fraud. I think she...
HEMMER: A novel theory?
TOOBIN: Very much so. I think she has a real chance of getting that one count tossed out of the case.
HEMMER: OK. So on this charge today, anyway, there's a rub between your first amendment right to basically have your first -- your right to free speech, right, first amended, as opposed to being under investigation right now by the Feds? TOOBIN: And you have no right -- the prosecution's theory is you have a right to free speech but you have no right to mislead investors about your own conduct, thus getting them to buy or keep your stock under false pretenses. The trial is in January, the hearing today.
HEMMER: You've been kind of wishy on this whole thing. Squishy, I should say.
TOOBIN: I've -- squishy, look, I can be accused of being in the tank for Martha Stewart. The accusation has been made. It should be out there on the table.
HEMMER: Yes. Let's talk about this hair in the Scott Peterson case.
TOOBIN: OK.
HEMMER: How critical is it? One hair on a pair of pliers could mean what?
TOOBIN: The idea is it is a tie putting Laci Peterson's hair in this boat, which prosecutors will claim that Scott used to dispose of the body in San Francisco Bay, where, of course, she was found. It is incriminating for that reason. It is not as incriminating as it might be because they were married. There is transference of hair from husband to wife. It happens all the time. The fact that her wife -- her hair might be found in that boat is certainly not as incriminating if this were a case of stranger murder, where there'd be no reason for them to be any connection between the two.
HEMMER: We all know, America all knows she was eight months pregnant at the time. You think some testimony yesterday with what was given in terms of court about when the fetus may have actually died, the fact that it was together with the woman.
TOOBIN: Right. We want to try not to be too graphic about this, but one of the issues that was raised was somehow the fetus murdered separately in some sort of cult theory? That was one of the theories that was being floated out there, apparently by the defense.
The prosecution really shot that down by saying that the -- that Laci and the fetus essentially died together. So there was no, there was no separate murder of the fetus. There was some plastic found around the fetus's neck. The expert who testified yesterday said he thought that was just river flotsam, it had nothing to do with the cause of death.
HEMMER: Meanwhile, one of America's longest preliminary hearings looks like it might be winding down soon. We shall see.
TOOBIN: You know, think about the entire 130 witnesses in the sniper case all testified before -- well before California could get through even a preliminary hearing in the...
HEMMER: That says something, yes.
TOOBIN: Two different legal systems.
HEMMER: Thanks, Jeff.
TOOBIN: OK.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
