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July 19, 2004 The many months of wondering what was going to happen to Martha Stewart in this landmark trial have finally come to a close and we know now that she is possibly going to have to do some jail time as well as home confinement and fines. Was this fair and just punishment for a woman that did little more than lie or is she being made a scapegoat? Let’s just trace the timeline of what Martha Stewart did so we can effectively determine if this small money making venture that netted her now a large loss is worth jail time, home confinement, and fines. Back on December 27, 2001 (www.courttv.com) Martha Stewart sold her ImClone stock which was just one day prior to an announcement by the FDA disallowing Erbitex to be used on cancer patients. It was noted that she made a whopping $51,000 profit from this early sale. However, it was not her sale of this stock that prompted the investigation with the SEC. It was the sale of stock from the ImClone’s CEO, Sam Waksal, that got the attention of the SEC. He netted himself a tidy $7.3 million dollars from that sale. It was because of Martha Stewart’s affiliation with Sam Waksal and her own business success that she became a target of this investigation as well. During the time that she was under investigation Martha Stewart was nominated to the board of directors of the New York Stock Exchange. At this time the investigation was not public knowledge. (www.courttv.com) On June 6, 2002 Martha Stewart became front page news for the sale of her ImCone stock. (www.courttv.com) October 2, 2002 Douglas Fanuil, the assistant to Martha’s broker, cut a deal and confessed that Bacanovic told him to pass along this inside news to Martha Stewart regarding the sale of her ImClone stock. (www.courttv.com) In exchange for this damning evidence he got a single misdemeanor charge and became the star witness for the prosecution. The next day, October 3, 2004, Martha Stewart resigned her position on the board of directors with the New York Stock Exchange. (www.courttv.com) Her own stock, Martha Stewart Omnimedia, took a huge dump as news of this resignation circulated. That same day ImClone stock fell a shocking 67%. Just eight months after this news became public and as Martha Stewart’s Omnimedia stock was beginning to regain momentum she and Bacanovic were indicted in a stunning 41 page, nine charge frenzy by the SEC. (www.courttv.com) The date was June 4, 2003. That same day she resigned as CEO of her organization. After sitting through many months of jury selection, trial motions, testimony, and arguments Martha Stewart was convicted of lying to Federal investigators. (www.courttv.com) Evidence was scant to convict her on anything else so the SEC had to suffice with lying. She was sentenced to five months jail time and five months house arrest along with a $40,000 fine. Of course her attorney is appealing this case and it could be several more months before she actually serves any of this time. Was all of the time and money spent on taking her to trial necessary or did it merely serve to appease those that are envious of her success? I tend to think that she could do more good out of jail and probably by performing some sort of community service that is closely aligned with her design sense and creative background. Maybe she could design some new sheets, comforter sets, or prison garb for the Danbury Women’s Facility where they have high hopes she will spend some time, or maybe she could offer some landscaping advice to the City of Danbury along with paying for some wonderful plantings targeted at beautifying their facility. In any case her talents will be lost as she sits in the Danbury Women’s Facility cooking or cleaning at the behest of some underpaid and overworked hireling that most likely gets off on the fact that they are in charge of this incredible design diva and that she really has to do everything they say or else. As the time for her appeal moves more near we may begin to see things change, but until then we can watch, listen, and maybe learn more about our legal system’s shortcomings. Reference: www.courttv.com ------------ About the author: Michelle Malsbury was born and raised in Champaign, Illinois. She attended Parkland College and the University of Illinois before graduating from the University of Phoenix with her degree in Business Management. Currently she is working on her master’s degree in Organizational Management while concurrently pursuing her lofty writing ambitions. Ms. Malsbury moved to south Florida in 1983 and resides between the Keys and Apalachicola, allowing her to experience the southernmost and nearly northernmost beauty in the state of Florida. Travels have taken her from Europe through the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, and across much of the United States. Michelle has been a bartender, real estate agent, flight attendant, beauty contestant, yacht broker, and commodities broker over the years, but writing is her passion. She enjoys outdoor activities like sailing, waterskiing, hiking, and fishing as well as reading, music, playing with her pets, and writing. “Three Years With Adonis” is the first to be published of several books that she has written. In addition to “Three Years With Adonis”, she has authored four other books and three screenplays while continuing to explore all that life hands her. "Three Years With Adonis" will be available eary 2005. Email Michelle Malsbury: abuchez@mchsi.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
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