A jury can decide whether the author of a best-selling book about the death of Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith defamed her lawyer by making allegations that may be too outlandish to be true, including that he pimped her to up to 50 men a year, a judge concluded Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Denny Chin found plenty of reasons to let a jury hear the facts behind a $60 million libel lawsuit brought by lawyer Howard K. Stern against “Blonde Ambition” author Rita Cosby, a veteran television news anchor and “Inside Edition” correspondent. The lawsuit was filed less than a month after the book was published in September 2007. The judge said the book’s claim that Stern had a sexual relationship with Larry Birkhead, the father of Smith’s daughter, was “nothing short of explosive. Perhaps too explosive.” “In other words,” he said, “printing a claim that Birkhead and Stern had sex would be a way to make it to the top of the bestseller list, and a reasonable jury could find that Cosby ignored
Anna Nicole Smith companion can sue author for libel * Judge says gay claims not among defamatory statements (Adds Stern lawyer comment) By Christine Kearney NEW YORK, Aug 12 (Reuters) – A companion of late Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith can sue an author for defamation but not over gay sex claims because homosexuality is no longer viewed as contemptible, a U.S. judge said on Wednesday. Howard K. Stern is suing Rita Cosby and the Hachette Book Group over Cosby’s bestseller “Blonde Ambition: The Untold Story Behind Anna Nicole Smith’s Death.” Stern is the former lawyer and boyfriend of Smith, the Playboy playmate and Guess jeans model who died in 2007 from an accidental prescription drug overdose. Stern claimed the book, which was published six months after Smith’s death, contained 19 libelous statements, including that he had engaged in oral sex at a Los Angeles party with Larry Birkhead, the father of Smith’s child, and that Smith had later called Stern gay. U.S. District Judge Denny
Anna Nicole Smith’s former attorney and boyfriend, Howard K. Stern, has been told by a U.S. District Judge that his lawsuit against news anchor and correspondent Rita Cosby can move forward according to Reuters. Stern claims that Cosby’s biography “Blonde Ambition: The Untold Story Behind Anna Nicole Smith’s Death” contains 19 libelous statements in a $60 million suit. Judge Denny Chin ruled that 11 of the statements could be used for a defamation suit as the case progresses. The judge said: “Cosby’s actions are extremely troubling, and suggest that she was attempting to obstruct justice by tampering with witnesses.” Cosby’s lawyer is pleased that the case now has a narrower scope and is “fully confident that a jury will dismiss” the remaining charges. Cosby had been an anchor at Fox News and MSNBC and, most recently, has been a “Special Correspondent” for CBS’ “Inside Edition.” Sources: