Star Justice: Surprises
August 11, 2004
From arrests to postponements to coping with terror,
some surprising developments mark today's celebrity
legal scene.
To start comes stunning news that legendary newsman
Mike Wallace was arrested. Today, the
86-year-old "60 Minutes" correspondent is
back on the street after being handcuffed by police
in New York, last night.
On CNN today, Wallace laughed it off, saying, "Obviously,
these guys weren't fans of '60 Minutes.'"
The incident occurred Tuesday night in front of "Luke's,"
a restaurant in New York. Wallace was inside getting
take-out when police officers approached his driver
for being double-parked. Wallace came out to argue his
case, but one officer claims the newsman actually lunged
at him
"I don't remember the last time I lunged,"
Wallace told us, sarcastically. "I've said it before,
I lunge occasionally into bed, but..." He went
on to describe what happened, saying, "Suddently
they were behind me and pushing me up against the car."
"Extra" spoke to Luigi Militello, the manager
of "Luke's," who confirmed the officers' treatment
of Wallace: "He was thrown against the car, assumed
the position and handcuffed and carted away."
Militelli backs Wallace's story, saying, "I was
appalled; totally unecessary."
Wallace faces charges of disorderly conduct.
Meanwhile, in Colorado, Kobe Bryant comes
one huge step closer to freedom. In an astonishing announcement,
Colorado prosecutors have asked the judge to delay the
sexual assault trial -- indefinitely.
"Extra" has obtained the surprising legal
papers, filed shortly after the young woman filed a
civil lawsuit against the NBA star, Tuesday. In them,
the prosecution says the questioning of the accuser's
past, "Was extremely intrusive and personal to
the victim."
And if that's not surprising enough, one of the accuser's
college friends has hit the Internet -- in defense of
Kobe. She claims the young woman once plotted to have
sex with the rapper Eminem.
And, in a less surprising development, we've obtained
the divorce papers filed by actress Ali Landry
against Mario Lopez.
Their split was made public several weeks ago. The two
were married less than one month, and had a prenup.
Landry cites the old standard, "irreconcilable
differences" as the reason for the split.
Finally, with all its glitz, glamour and fun, Las Vegas
may not look like a place under a high terror alert,
but it is, according to recent reports.
We were invited on the set of the hit TV show "Las
Vegas," where we discovered that stars like Josh
Duhamel are not too concerned about the reports
that Sin City could be a target for terrorism. "I
try not to live in fear and think about those things,"
Josh told us.
For more surprising Star Justice details, don't miss
Wednesday's edition of "Extra."
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