Celebrity Cases Have Judges--and the Public--Seeing Stars

Normally, Judge Judith Chirlin’s courtroom in Los Angeles Superior Court is a quiet place, where most business or personal injury disputes are resolved unobtrusively.

But life turned hectic in Courtroom 408 this month, as actress Kim Basinger defended herself against a producer who claimed she had broken a contract to star in the film “Boxing Helena.”

In celebrity-sated Los Angeles, you might think yet another star in court would be a ho-hum affair. But when Basinger’s case went to trial, photographers and reporters descended, as did fans looking for autographs from the actress and her actor-boyfriend Alec Baldwin, who often accompanied Basinger to court.

“The only time I have seen every seat taken before this was when I watched ‘L.A. Law’ on television,” Chirlin said.

Chirlin’s courtroom turned into “a madhouse” when she allowed cameras in during the first few days of the trial, so she kicked the photographers out. “Then we had this whole gaggle outside, and any time a messenger would come in to deliver documents . . . they’d hold the door open and I’d hear all this click-click-click.” Chirlin stationed a bailiff at the door to keep it shut.

When the jury returned its verdict in favor of the producer, scores of jurors, other plaintiffs and defendants with their attorneys joined the mob of reporters in the courtroom hallway. Attorney Alexandra Marmion, in a trial next door, was there because the commotion forced her case into a recess. “It was hard to hear,” she said.

Basinger was not the only celebrity in Los Angeles courtrooms in recent weeks. “Empty Nest” star Richard Mulligan was in downtown Superior Court at a hearing over spousal support, and actor Robert De Niro was the defendant last week in a child support action brought by a singer with whom he had been involved.

Clint Eastwood was in U.S. District Court testifying at a sentencing hearing involving a tabloid reporter.

It is not only the public and members of the press who snap up available seats so they can stargaze. When Eastwood appeared, “there were secretaries, prosecutors, people from various judges’ staffs,” said Assistant U.S. Atty. Ronni MacLaren, who prosecuted the case.

Eastwood testified that he had been victimized by a Globe tabloid story written by Tony Castro, who faced sentencing for mail fraud and tax evasion. MacLaren had not publicized the actor’s appearance, but word got around.

“When I asked my secretary to fax a subpoena to Mr. Eastwood, I think she told a friend and they told a few friends,” MacLaren said. As a result, the courtroom “was packed. People were standing. We had trouble finding a seat for Mr. Eastwood.”

During Basinger’s trial, Chirlin noted, “I had more visits from other judges. Some of my male colleagues came in to hand me a note, or ask a question. . . .”

Yet to Drew Hughes, a Superior Court clerk, the Basinger trial was tame compared to the furor he witnessed when Elizabeth Taylor appeared in 1990, warring with a former boyfriend over profits from her Passion perfume, or when “Dynasty” star Joan Collins was divorcing fourth husband Peter Holm in 1988.

“It was crazy here then,” Hughes said. “Camera crews were running around like a bunch of wild animals. Basinger isn’t even close.”

Celebrity trials also have made attorneys famous.

Basinger’s attorney is Howard L. Weitzman, who became well-known when he successfully defended car maker John DeLorean against drug trafficking charges nearly a decade ago. Since then, he has represented such clients as former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson in his bitter divorce from actress Robin Givens, Magic Johnson in a lawsuit accusing the former Lakers’ basketball star of infecting a woman with the AIDS virus, and actor O. J. Simpson in a spousal battery case.

Marvin M. Mitchelson, representing singer Helena Lisandrello in her case against De Niro, has seen the glare of publicity go both ways. The lawyer for celebrity clients such as Collins, Sonny Bono and Bianca Jagger has often ended up as the object of scrutiny himself--most recently when he was convicted of federal tax fraud. He will be sentenced in April but plans an appeal.

“I’ve represented a lot of celebrities,” he said of the not always flattering attention he’s received. “(So) when you’re in trouble, that’s also a story.”

Mitchelson believes that courtroom commotion over stars occurs because people “don’t think celebrities are real. So there’s a certain excitement when they become involved in a case. In fact, they have real problems like everybody else. They’re just human beings.”

Celebrities do get some special treatment at court.

Eastwood was allowed to park in the federal judges’ parking lot and was escorted to the courtroom by U.S. marshals in a special elevator, MacLaren said. Chirlin made an adjacent empty courtroom and judge’s chambers available to Basinger, “so she could go to the ladies’ room in peace.”

After Basinger heard the jury’s nearly $9-million verdict against her for damages, she had to run away to avoid public questioning. Just as they do in the movies, she fled down the hall, boyfriend Baldwin alongside, photographers knocking over each other to catch up. The pair jumped into a flashy black BMW and raced off with squealing tires, running a red light.

Once during the trial, another celebrity came to watch. One afternoon, the judge spotted Lisa Zane, who plays lawyer Melina Paros on “L.A Law,” there . Chirlin later learned that they had come to watch one of the real-life lawyers, Patricia L. Glaser, in action.

“I guess this was art imitating life imitating art,” the judge said.