The guy who allegedly masterminded an extortion plot against David Letterman is now using the Tiger Woods scandal as precedent to get the charges against him thrown out ..according to new documents obtained by TMZ.
Robert Halderman's lawyer, Gerald Shargel, filed legal papers asking that the charges against his client be dismissed. In the papers, Shargel notes that when news of Tiger's infidelity surfaced, Mistress #1, Rachel Uchitel, reportedly inked a multi-million dollar settlement in return for her silence -- with the help of Gloria Allred.
Shargel notes, "Their behavior was capitalist, not criminal."
Halderman's lawyer says his client essentially just "offered to sell his very marketable story to David Letterman." Shargel says that celebrity misdeeds have "significant fair market value" and they are "routinely suppressed through private business arrangements."
Shargel's point -- Rachel and Gloria didn't get prosecuted, so why should Halderman?
Letterman Defendant Uses Tiger Defense
12/29/2009 5:35 PM PST BY TMZ STAFF
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Previous 15 Comments | 1 | 2 | 3
mark
the man may have a point. Of course women usually can ask for money and everybody knows that they do so nobody gets "shocked" by the procedure. Plus he wasn't "directly" involved like women are.
still the point is valid (a tiny one but still), money for silence.
he says "why women can do it and I can't?"
well.. not so easy to answer, indeed.
mark
one more thing to consider: not only women usually are directly invokved but they are also (usually) young and pretty in order to get da money. that's another big difference to consider.
Fubunki PunkChat
last time I checked Halderman did not have sex with David Letterman, so Halderman comparing himself with Uchitel does not make enough sense under the law.
Jaimie
This would be the same if Halderman had slept with Letterman! Plus it would be a far, far more interesting story than another man that sleeps with a half his age woman that works for him.
DennisH
Yeah, sure it's a sleazy lawyer trick. Yeah, sure he's a sleazy lawyer, just like Allred and every other sleazeball attorney. But hey, it might work. What have you got to lose?
John Hanges
I wonder how long it'll take the judge to stop laughing.
vb
Tiger OFFERED the money? And we know this how?