BANKMAN FRIED FORMER FTX CEO AT TRIAL: COURT SKETCHES

Sam Bankman Fried's demeanor during his trial has shown him to be more and more concerned as the witnesses pile up and the days go on. At the beginning of the trial he appeared focused on his laptop, showing little  emotion

Courtroom Sketch of Sam Bankman Fried at the beginning of his trial 

However as witnesses began to take the stand, his emotions started to show. During the first few witnesses he did not have much of a reaction.  It was Gary Wang, the co-founder of FTX , was the witness who started to unnerve him. During Wang's direct testimony he would put his hand up to his head, he seemed upset. It must be tough hearing your best college friend testify against you. 

Sketches of Bankman Fried during Gary Wang direct examination 

Then during Wang's cross examination he would write down notes and motion to his attorney so he could give them to him.  He had Post it notes all over the place. Sometimes he would fold them in his hands and then fold them again and again until the Post it was a tiny little square. 

Courtroom Sketch of Bankman Fried writing on Post it notes, messages for his attorney
during cross examination of Gary Wang

 Sketch of Bankman Fried talking to his attorney and handing him one of his many notes. 

Then when Caroline Ellison took the stand, he seemed on a roller coaster. Closing his eyes at times seeming to meditate intensely clasping his hands together. 

 Courtroom Drawing of Bankman Fried seated eyes closed hand clasped 

Once he shook his head slightly, then he would stare at his computer screen and at times he would grimace. When Ellison walked in and out of the courtroom there was no eye contact between them. 

Sketch of Bankman Fried and Caroline Ellison during her testimony 

Ellison would hold her head down when speaking or when the lawyers were at the sidebar.  During those times Bankman Fried would stare into space or look at his computer screen.  It was summed up in two words, extreme awkwardness. 

Courtroom Sketch of Bankman Fried grimacing during Caroline Ellison's testimony 

More weeks to come for Bankman Fried and his emotional roller coaster will continue. 

TEXAS MAN CHARGED WITH KIDNAPPING 13 YEAR OLD GIRL, ARRESTED AND ARRAIGNED. Artwork by Bill Robles

 A federal grand jury indicted a Texas man Thursday who allegedly kidnapped a 13-year-old girl at gunpoint in Texas, drove her to California, and sexually assaulted her multiple times before his arrest in Long Beach last week.

 According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Steven Robert Sablan, 61, of Cleburne, is charged with one count of kidnapping and one count of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.

 

Steven Sablan alleged kidnapper at his arraignment. Artwork by Bill Robles

His arraignment was arraigned on  July 31 in the United States District Court in Los Angeles.

 

According to the indictment and an affidavit previously filed with a criminal complaint in this matter, on July 6 in San Antonio, the victim was walking down a street when Sablan, driving a gray Nissan Sentra, approached her. Sablan allegedly raised a black handgun to his side and told the victim to get in the car, saying "If you don't get in the car with me, I am going to hurt you."

 Fearing for her life, the victim obeyed Sablan, court documents allege Sablan allegedly began driving with the victim in the car and asked her how old she was. Court documents state the victim said she was 13 years old, and – after later mentioning she had a friend in Australia – Sablan allegedly told the victim he could take her to a cruise ship to visit this friend, but she had to do something for him first.

 He then repeatedly sexually assaulted the victim, according to court documents. Over the next two days, Sablan allegedly drove the victim from Texas to California and sexually assaulted her at least two more times.

 On the morning of July 9, Sablan parked the car in a lot in Long Beach and took their clothes to a laundromat for washing. While Sablan was in the laundromat, the victim stayed in the car and wrote "Help me!" on a piece of paper to try and get someone's attention, according to court documents.

A stranger saw the note, and notified law enforcement and Sablan was arrested. 

Manson family killer Leslie Van Houten freed on parole

 Leslie Van Houten, a follower of Charles Manson who was convicted in two killings, was released on parole Tuesday, officials said.

Van Houten, 73, spent more than five decades in prison.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who had previously blocked parole efforts, said Friday that he would not challenge Houten's release in state Supreme Court.

An appeals court ruled in May that Van Houten was eligible for parole, reversing a decision by Newsom to reject parole.

Leslie Van Houten testifying on the witness stand during the Manson trial. Artwork by Bill Robles 

Van Houten was originally sentenced to death for the Aug. 10, 1969, murders of Leno and Rosemary La Bianca.

"The original conviction and death sentence were reversed on appeal and she was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole," the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said in a statement.

In 1969, Manson and fellow cult member Charles “Tex” Watson went inside the couple's home and tied them up.

Manson went outside and told Van Houten and another person to go inside and follow Watson’s directions, according to court records. Watson told them to kill Rosemary LaBianca, and Watson killed Leno LaBianca.

The previous day, Watson and other cult members — not Van Houten — killed actress Sharon Tate and others in her home.

Van Houten is the second of six Manson cult followers convicted of murder and initially sentenced to death to be paroled.

Leslie Van Houten during bail hearing in 2015 by Bill Robles 

Most of the death sentences were commuted to life in prison under a 1972 court decision that outlawed capital punishment; the death penalty was later reinstated in California.

More on Bill Robles' career

https://www.cnn.com/2015/07/14/us/courtroom-sketch-artist-bill-robles/index.html

The lawyer who used ChatGPT's fake legal cases in court said he was 'duped' by the AI

The lawyer who used ChatGPT's fake legal cases in court said he was 'duped' by the AI, but the judge questioned how he didn't spot the 'legal gibberish'

The lawyer who used ChatGPT to help write up an affidavit — and didn't realize the AI had completely made up fake legal cases to cite — said he was "duped" by the tool during a sanctions hearing before a New York judge on Thursday, Inner City Press reported.

Steven Schwartz, second from left listening to Judge P. Kevin Castel asking questions how these cases were verified by the attorneys. Schwartz is flanked by his legal team.
Artwork by Elizabeth Williams ( click on image to see larger)

But the federal judge in the hearing pressed the lawyer, questioning how the lawyer missed the fakes and saying ChatGPT's fabricated ramblings were "legal gibberish," journalist Matthew Russell Lee reported for his nonprofit outlet.

"Chat GPT wasn't supplementing your research - it was your research, right?" US District Court Judge P. Kevin Castel asked lawyer Steven Schwartz of personal injury law firm Levidow, Levidow & Oberman, according to Inner City Press.

Judge P. Kevin Castel during the hearing asking Schwartz and his colleague Peter LoDuca, how they verified the bogus cases they cited in a legal document.
Artwork by Elizabeth Williams ( click on image to see larger)

The affidavit used by Schwartz and colleague Peter LoDuca was for a lawsuit from a man who alleged he was hurt by a serving cart on a flight. The court filing included six court cases that were "bogus judicial decisions with bogus quotes and bogus internal citations," Castel wrote in a previous court order.

"You say you verify cases," Castel said, according to Inner City Press 

"I, I, I thought there were cases that could not be found on Google," Schwartz replied, according to the outlet.

"Six cases, none found on Google. This non-existent case, Varghese, the excerpt you had was inconsistent, even on the first page," Castel said, the outlet reported. "Can we agree that's legal gibberish?"

Schwartz responded that he thought ChatGPT's output was "excerpts," Inner City Press reported.

Another lawyer at the firm, Peter LoDuca, is also facing sanctions, though he said in court that he didn't do the research that was used in the affidavit.

"I have worked with Mr. Schwartz for 27 years," LoDuca said in court, Inner City Press reported. "I should have been more skeptical. I can't go back and change what was done. This will never happen again."

The hearing adjourned without Castel making a decision on possible sanctions for the lawyers.

Inside look into the E Jean Carroll trial: Courtroom artwork by Elizabeth Williams

 A collection of the images from the E Jean Carroll trial in consecutive order. From the first day of testimony to the final verdict

E Jean Carroll on the witness stand  1st day of testimony, below cover of New York Daily News

 E Jean Carroll on witness stand with photo of her and Donald Trump from the 1980's

E Jean Carroll breaking down on witness stand describing the attack by Donald Trump 

Trump Deposition played for jury where he stated that when questioned if the Access Hollywood statements were true:

"Well, historically, that's true with stars," Trump replied."It's true with stars that they can grab women by the p----?" Trump was asked.   "Well, if you look over the last million years, I guess that's been largely true," Trump said. "Not always, but largely true. Unfortunately, or fortunately."    "And you consider yourself to be a star?" Trump was asked. He replied " Yes"

 Joe Tacopina seated at trial watching the cross examination of Dr Leslie Lebowitz by his co counsel. 

E Jean Carroll seated upper left hand corner. 

Note: Carroll was seated deep into the well of the courtroom and barely able to be seen by artists. It was a challenge to draw her during trial when she was not in the witness stand. 

Dr Leslie Lebowtiz on the witness stand on direct examination discussing the effect of trauma from a sexual assault on E Jean Carroll, and other victims. 

Former People Magazine reporter Natasha Stoynoff describes the sexual assault made by Donald Trump during a magazine interview at Mara Lago. 

E Jean Carroll's friend, Carol Martin describes the conversation she had with Carroll soon after the attack by Donald Trump. 

Final witness: E Jean Carroll's former boss, Roberta Myers on the witness stand. 

Joe Tacopina addressing Judge Kaplan regarding giving Trump more time to decide to testify after he rested.  

E Jean Carroll's attorney Roberta Kaplan giving her summation to the jury. The jury was anonymous so no faces were drawn. 

Joe Tacopina gives his summation to the jury, while showing excerpts from the Donald Trump video deposition 

Verdict being read in open court. Jury in foreground, Carroll seated left between her attorneys. 

E Jean Carroll's reaction after the verdict was read. She turned around and smiled at the jury as the courtroom deputy was polling the jury. 

Hermes vs Rothschild: Is it metaverse art or Birkin ripoff? A US jury will decide

Trademark infringement has extended to the metaverse – with luxury brand Hermès of Paris battling digital artist Mason Rothschild in court over the creation and sale of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) that depict images resembling its hard-to-get Birkin bags.

Rothschild, a Los Angeles-based artist and entrepreneur, took the stand on Wednesday. 

He was cross examined by Hermes attorney Oren Warshavsky. 

Hermes Birkin Bag on table and Rothchild NFT on screen. 
Artwork by Elizabeth Williams 

A trial over the alleged infringement of Hermès’ intellectual property began in Manhattan federal court this week, with the multibillion-US dollar corporation claiming the name of the NFTs – MetaBirkin – misled consumers into incorrectly believing they were affiliated with Hermès.

“Hermès brought the lawsuit because they thought it infringed and thought people would wrongly think Hermès was involved,” Oren Warshavsky told the jury in his opening statement. The sticky situation is made stickier because the company apparently has plans to join the metaverse as well, Warshavsky revealed.

Mason Rothschild on direct examination.
Hermes Birkin bags on table and Rothchild NFT on screen 
Artwork by Elizabeth Williams

The Hermès dispute also pits artists’ First Amendment rights against company intellectual property claims.

Rothschild’s lawyer, Rhett Millsaps, told the jury that as long as the product is artistically relevant and doesn’t explicitly mislead consumers, then it’s protected under the First Amendment of the Constitution, guaranteeing freedom of expression.

Rothschild took the stand on Tuesday afternoon telling the jury he’s worked at various fashion store like Christian Dior and Saint Laurent and has done graphic design for local stores and individuals.

“I’ve been in the art space for awhile doing my own art and going to galleries,” Rothschild told jurors. “It’s always been a main staple of my life.”

He said he respected Hermès, though “maybe a bit less after the lawsuit.”

“I value fashion and art and I appreciate what they do,” he said.

Most of Rothschild’s projects make some kind of social commentary, Millsaps said. The MetaBirken NFT, he said, is about the luxury-consumer culture, and whether people would ascribe the same value to an NFT as they do to the actual product.

That’s unclear so far. Some of the NFTs, which Rothschild initially sold for US$450 each, have resold for tens of thousands of US dollars. The Baby Birkin NFT sold at an auction in May 2021 for US$23,500. That’s more than the US$8,500 Hermès Halzan 25 sells for on Madison Avenue Couture’s website, but still far less than the Hermès Birkin 25 Himalaya Niloticus Crocodile Diamond Encrusted Hardware – which is listed at US$500,000. The 25-centimetre Hermès bags are also known as Baby Birkins.

Hermes Bags on desk and Rothschild's Baby Birkin NFT on screen 

The Rothschild NFTs are designed with the same shape as the actual Hermès bag, but are covered with fur instead of leather and have some type of visual or pattern on them. The Baby Birkin NFT has a moving picture of a foetus inside the bag. Rothschild also proposed on social media a plan to recreate the designer bag’s famed horse keychain – which the company used as evidence to demonstrate the violation to Hermès’ trademark of not just the Birken name but its configuration, even though the plan was never implemented

The NFTs hurt Hermès’ ability to bring its own digital products into the metaverse, Nicolas Martin, Group General Counsel at Hermès who specializes in intellectual property, told the jury on Tuesday.

“If we want to bring our most iconic handbag to the digital market it’ll always be compared to MetaBirken,” he said. “We lost the opportunity of being first on the market, which is really impactful for Hermès.”

It’s not the first time Rothschild’s creations have landed him in trouble. He printed college logos on apparel and received a cease-and-desist order from one of the schools, Warshavsky said.

                                All artwork is copyright of Elizabeth Williams

Ex-convict who abused college women and men gets 60 years in prison

 NEW YORK — An ex-convict who obtained millions of dollars by subjecting his daughter's ex-college roommates to forced labor and prostitution was sentenced Friday to 60 years in prison by a judge who labeled him an "evil genius" who used sadism and psychological torture to control every aspect of his victims' lives.

Lawrence "Larry" Ray, 63, was sentenced in Manhattan federal court by Judge Lewis J. Liman.

"There is no reason to believe Mr. Ray will age out of criminal behavior," Liman said, noting that the crimes began when Ray moved in late 2010 into his daughter's on-campus housing at Sarah Lawrence College, a small New York liberal arts school.

The judge said Ray charmed his victims with his "exaggerated sense of self" and his intelligence before "robbing them of their relationships, self worth, memories and then their bodies" after convincing them they had poisoned him and owed him for it.

Ray victim Daniel Levin speaking during sentencing hearing. Spoke of the torture he endured while under control of Ray at Sarah Lawrence College. 

"Through psychological terror and manipulation, he convinced them what they knew to be true was in fact false," Liman said. "He beat his victims. He tortured them and at times he starved them. He degraded them sexually to the point where they lost any self worth."

During the trial, one women testified that she became a sex worker to try to pay reparations to Ray after becoming convinced that she had poisoned him. She said that, over four years, she gave Ray $2.5 million in installments that averaged between $10,000 and $50,000 per week.

In a statement read aloud at sentencing Friday by a lawyer, the woman said she had been subjected to "unremitting sadistic torture" by a man who offered a "twisted, empty and broken version of life."

"Experiences I had while being sex trafficked haunt me today," according to her statement. She said Ray had forced "us to hold his evil for him. ... Each time we tried to put it down, he brutalized us."

One victim who spoke said he was living a happy, exciting life as a college sophomore when he met Ray "and all of that went up in smoke." He said he'd attempted suicide more than once.

Another victim said in court that he fears Ray will find a way to harm him from prison.

Lawrence Ray listening to the sentence handed down by Judge Liman of 60 years in prison.

Artwork by Elizabeth Williams  

Columbia ob-gyn Robert Hadden preyed on patients at ‘most vulnerable’: feds

Disgraced Columbia University ob-gyn Robert Hadden preyed on patients who trusted him as a respected doctor when they were at their “most vulnerable,” federal prosecutors charged in their opening statement at his sex crimes trial in Manhattan on Monday. 

Hadden is accused of sexually assaulting dozens of women, some of whom were pregnant at the time, when they were in his care from the 1990s up to 2012. 

“They trusted him to provide this care,” Assistant US Attorney Paul Monteleone told jurors in Manhattan federal court, adding some of the victims visited Hadden for the “health of the babies they were carrying.” 

“All along he was motivated … by his own sexual desires,” Monteleone said. 

Robert Hadden accused of abusing numerous patients seated at defense table surrounded
by his defense team. 

The prosecutor described in excruciating detail the alleged abuse Hadden inflicted, including sexually stimulating his victims, licking them and making crude remarks that had no medical basis. 

"The defendant used his position of power to sexually abuse his patients for years,” Monteleone told jurors. 

The first witness to take the stand, a victim identified in court as Kate Evans, graphically told jurors how Hadden sexually assaulted her during two of her last visits to him at Columbia University’s Herbert Irving Pavilion in Washington Heights in 2010 and 2011.

“I was petrified,” she said. “I knew he sexually assaulted me. It was very clear he was a sexual predator.”

Evans, who had been referred to Hadden by her sister and who said she spoke with the doctor about her home life and kids, said she was “stunned and shocked” by the abuse. 

“I can’t believe someone I trusted and my family trusted would do that to me,” she told the jury.

Hadden is accused of enticing four victims to travel from out of state so he could sexually abuse them in New York. He previously pleaded guilty in state court to abusing a number of patients, as part of a controversial no-jail deal with Manhattan prosecutors. 

Argentine visitors describe Hudson River bike path attack that killed their friends on celebratory NYC trip- NYDN by Molly Crane

 Ten high school friends from Argentina traveled to New York for several

 days of fun — but only five went home after accused terrorist Sayfullo

 Saipov ran them down with a rented truck, witnesses at Saipov’s trial recounted Wednesday.

“We were celebrating 30 years since we graduated, 35 years since we knew each other, and there were some birthdays we were celebrating,” Juan Pablo Trevisan testified. 

Juan Pablo Trevisan testifying about seeing his friends before they were hit by the truck that Sayfullo Saipov was driving at 60 mph down the bike path. Artwork by Elizabeth Williams 

One of the birthdays was his own, Trevisan said.Trevisan and his friends were cycling in pairs on the Hudson River Park bike path between Watts and Vestry Sts. on Oct. 31, 2017, when prosecutors say Saipov sped his rented trick along the bike lane.

Juan Pablo Trevisan describing the attack on the bike path. 

As Trevisan reached an arm out and asked one of his friends to stop and wait up, he heard a loud thumping noise. “At that moment, the pickup truck [hit] my arm and my wrist, and there was a sign that was dragging that came off and hit my arm.”

Another member of the Argentine group, Martin Marro, recalled a fellow surviving friend tending to him as he bled profusely on the sidewalk.

Martin Marro testifying about the injuries he sustained after being hit by the truck while riding a Citibike on the Hudson River Bike Path. 
Artwork by Elizabeth Williams

“He said to stay calm, that he was there to take care of me and to protect me and to make sure that I wouldn’t drown in my own blood,” Marro said, adding that among other serious injuries he sustained were fractures to his skull, brain and eye socket.

Trevisan and Marro told their stories on the third day of evidence and arguments at Saipov’s federal death penalty trial.

After the men spoke, federal prosecutors showed the jury photos of the victims’ covered bodies.

Sayfullo Saipov watching witnesses testify 1/11/23

Slaughtered were Hernan Diego Mendoza, Alejandro Damian Pagnucco, Ariel Erlij, Hernan Ferruchi and Diego Enrique Angelini.

Also killed were Darren Drake, a 32-year-old from New Jersey, and 23-year-old Nicholas Cleves of New York.

Jurors on Tuesday heard from the devastated loved ones of a 31-year-old mother of two, Ann-Laure Decadt, of Belgium, killed as she rode with her two sisters and mom.

Harvey Weinstein Los Angeles sentencing on rape and sexual assault charges delayed until 23 February

Harvey Weinstein won a six-week sentencing delay Monday for his Los Angeles rape conviction after his lawyers said he plans to file a motion for a new trial.

The disgraced movie mogul, 70, was due to be sentenced Monday for the 2013 rape and sexual assault of an Italian actress at a Los Angeles hotel, but Judge Lisa Lench postponed the day of reckoning to Feb. 23 to give his defense time to prepare their argument for another trial.

Harvey Weinstein in court  1/9/2023 
artwork by Bill Robles

Judge Lench said Monday she would hear Weinstein’s pitch for a trial at the Feb. 23 sentencing hearing and would move ahead with bestowing her punishment if his motion is denied.

Weinstein, who’s already serving a 23-year prison sentence out of New York after being convicted of rape and sexual assault in Manhattan in 2020, is facing up to 24 years in prison for his Los Angeles conviction.

Weinstein was convicted Dec. 19 of rape, forcible oral copulation, and sexual penetration by a foreign object for his February 2013 attack on an Italian actress at the Mr. C hotel on the outskirts of Beverly Hills. Jurors heard during the nearly two-month trial that Weinstein pushed his way into the victim’s hotel room and raped her while she was in town for an annual festival celebrating Italian films.

Real Housewife Jen Shah Sentenced to 6 1/2 Years

 Jen Shah of "Real Housewives" gets 6 1/2 year prison term

Fri, January 6, 2023 at 1:16 PM EST·2 min read

Jen Shah, one of the stars of Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City," was sentenced to prison Friday after pleading guilty to a fraud charge earlier this year.

In a Manhattan courtroom, U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein announced that the reality star, 49, will serve a sentence of 6½ years in prison, the Associated Press reported. Before her sentencing, Shah was facing 11 to 14 years in prison.

Jen Shah in court with her attorneys during sentencing 
artwork by Elizabeth Williams

“Reality TV has nothing to do with reality,” Shah said during Friday's hearing. "I am deeply sorry for what I’ve done. My actions have hurt innocent people.”

Jen Shah making tearful statement during sentencing 
court sketch by Elizabeth Williams

According to multiple reports, Shah will have to surrender on Feb. 17.

In a statement provided to The Times Friday, Shah's defense lawyer, Priya Chaudhry, said the reality star "deeply regrets the mistakes that she has made and is profoundly sorry to the people she has hurt.

"Jen has faith in our justice system, understands that anyone who breaks the law will be punished, and accepts this sentence as just," Chaudhry added. "Jen will pay her debt to society and when she is a free woman again, she vows to pay her debt to the victims harmed by her mistakes.

In July, Shah pleaded guilty to the count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She told a judge that in 2012 she took part in a massive telemarketing fraud for nearly a decade that prosecutors say cheated thousands of people nationwide.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kiersten Ann Fletcher said during the July hearing that Shah engaged in a fraudulent scheme from 2012 to 2021 that sold bogus services advertised to help people make substantial amounts of money through online businesses.

Shah, who admitted she was aware of the fraud, said, “I knew this was wrong and that many people were harmed, and I’m so sorry."

On Friday, Shah also pledged to pay $6.5 million in restitution and forfeiture when she gets out of prison.