celeb power
Amongst all the chatter about today’s conviction of Martha Stewart, this is by far my favorite piece of the story, from a Reuters story this afternoon…
Neither Stewart, who was visited in the courtroom during the trial by celebrity friends such as Bill Cosby and Rosie O’Donnell, nor Bacanovic took the stand in their own defense.
The appearance of other celebrities, however, may have done the businesswoman more harm than good. “If anything it was taken as a little bit of an insult,” said [juror] Hartridge. “Like that was supposed to sway our decision?”
If that was an intentional strategy on the part of the defense – to have jurors see Martha’s high-profile friends come to her aid – it obviously backfired. Could Stewart and her attorneys honestly envision the other scenario? One where a juror stands up in front of the press and says “Well, we know she broke the law and lied to investigators, but c’mon, did you see Bill Cosby in the courtroom? How cool was that! She can’t be that bad if he’s there to support her… So we acquitted, hoping for a dinner party invite.”