Masry Tells of Alleged Extortion of Brockovich

Ed Masry, the high-profile Westlake Village attorney and a subject of the movie “Erin Brockovich,” testified Wednesday about how three men allegedly tried to extort $310,000 from him and Brockovich.

Masry’s testimony came in the first day of a preliminary hearing to determine whether Brockovich’s ex-husband, ex-boyfriend and an attorney representing them should stand trial on charges of conspiracy and extortion.

Ex-husband Shawn Brown, ex-boyfriend Jorg Halaby, and attorney John Jeffrey Reiner are accused of trying to extort money from Brockovich in exchange for not telling the tabloids about an alleged sexual affair between Masry and Brockovich, as well as allegations that she was a bad mother.

Their defense attorneys say the men have committed no crimes and were engaged in a legitimate business deal.

During Wednesday’s 1 1/2-hour proceedings, Masry spoke matter-of-factly about the circumstances that led to an exchange of money between the parties. On April 11, Masry said, he had a phone conversation with Reiner.

Masry said the 19-minute conversation began with Reiner talking about his problems getting Universal Studios to pay for Brown’s side of the story documented in the movie, which was released March 17.

A character based on Brown did not appear in the fact-based movie about how a down-on-her-luck mother of three helped win a $333-million lawsuit against a public utility that was accused of poisoning a town’s water supply. Halaby was a character in the movie.

About a third of the way through the conversation Reiner said the important fact was “whether Erin and I were chaste,” Masry testified.

“He told me he had in his hands a contract in which Shawn Brown would receive a significant amount of money to not say that Erin and I had a sexual relationship nor that Erin was a bad mother,” Masry told Superior Court Judge James P. Cloninger.

How Brockovich was supposedly a bad mother, Masry didn’t say. He and Brockovich deny the two charges.

On April 26, the three men met with Masry, Brockovich and her attorney, Cathleen Drury, in Drury’s Thousand Oaks office. As a hidden camera rolled, checks were handed over and a two-page compromise and settlement document signed. Then Masry and Brockovich exited. Detectives entered the office and arrested the three men on suspicion of extortion.

In court Wednesday, Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael Frawley spent considerable time entering exhibits into the record. There was also a lengthy discussion about how the hearing will proceed with three separate defense attorneys representing clients with sometimes conflicting accounts.

Before proceedings ended, Reiner’s attorney, Gary S. Lincenberg, briefly questioned Masry.

All three defendants were in court, sitting behind their respective attorneys.

Only Joel Isaacson, who represents Brown, would comment, saying, “We all believe there was no crime here and it’s obvious that [Brown] didn’t know what was going on. He didn’t think there was any extortion.”