Lawyer Seeks New Trial for Randy Valli

Defense attorney Louis “Chuck” Samonsky has asked for a new trial for client Randy Valli on the grounds that a juror was biased.

Samonsky told a judge Thursday that Valli’s trial was tainted by a juror who disliked him because he represented accused murderer David Alvarez.

Valli, the wife of ‘60s singing icon Frankie Valli, was convicted in April of misdemeanor battery for slapping a Moorpark restaurant owner during a dispute over a meal.

Samonsky was widely criticized for not revealing the whereabouts of the body of Kali Manley, whom Alvarez is accused of killing. Instead, Samonsky tried to negotiate a deal for his client, telling Dist. Atty. Michael Bradbury that Alvarez would lead authorities to the body if prosecutors would agree not to seek the death penalty.

Bradbury refused and Alvarez took investigators to the corpse anyway.

Mindful of public outrage over the Alvarez case, Samonsky asked Judge Herbert Curtis to discreetly ask prospective jurors in Valli’s trial if they harbored any biases against the lawyers.

The jurors indicated that they did not. But Samonsky said Thursday that he recently learned from a juror that another juror discussed his involvement in the Alvarez case during deliberations.

“It wasn’t a comment about the case as much as it was about the counsel handling it,” he said.

The request for a new trial has been set for a hearing on June 22, and Valli’s sentencing date has been postponed until the issue is resolved.

Samonsky said he is uncertain how fallout from the Alvarez case, which he has since dropped, may affect other cases he is handling.

“I’ve talked to all of my clients [with] pending trials and advised them of the situation,” he said. “I’ve had discussions with several judges as well.”