There are more papers due out today, November 30, 2009 in South Carolina from G. Ben Thompson on the Motion for Contempt and for Sanctions based of his previous attorney, Susan M. Brown’s acts allegedly on his behalf.

Gathier Thompson III, Melodie Thompson, Gaither’s wife, and Gina Thompson Shelley all have Responses to the Estate of Anna Nicole Smith adding them as parties in place of the “Doe” names.

As I read over the papers filed by Susan M. Brown last week I found myself amazed as I always seem to be when it comes to the antics and ever changing lawyers from the South Carolina group of players.

In papers filed last week in the South Carolina Federal Court, Ms. Brown says she was on board with the Horizon’s dispute in the Bahamas from day one in 2006. However it appears if that is true that her clients were not straight up about the happenings in the Bahamas. If Brown’s allegations about her clients prove true in court then they appear to have made sure she missed some memos and certainly some major media news articles. If I remember correctly G. Ben Thompson has dropped all claims to Horizons and is now suing the Estate of Anna Nicole Smith (Dannielynn Birkhead), Howard K. Stern, and the lawyers Tracy Ferguson and Michael Scott. The time line for Ms. Brown being kept in the loop and the liaison between her clients and the attorneys in the Bahamas appear not to include Thompson’s attorney in January 2007, Knowles, at the news conference in the picture with this article and there is certainly nothing from Pro Pinder the current attorney in Brown’s filings. Both were attorneys in the Bahamas for Shelley and Thompson after Ferguson and Scott left the employment of the South Carolina family.

This is either dumber than a suitcase full of rocks on the South Carolina crew for not telling their lawyer everything which equals to tying your legal representatives hands and allowing them to be blindsided by the likes of L. Lin Wood. So did Thompson and Shelley throw their attorney under the bus, and did they wiave the attorney-client privilege in what appears to a free for all for Shelley and Thompson AGAIN!!

My guess from reading these filings is that Brown was not in the loop of the Horizons litigation and the property being distributed, and she is fighting for her legal career and thus like any lawyer who has been betrayed will come out fighting now that it appears that Thompson and Shelley has waived the attorney – client privilege which in my opinion was a dumb move on their part..

Here are the filings on November 24, last week and as soon as the filings come out today they will be added to this article.

SOUTH CAROLINA FEDERAL COURT FILINGS NOVEMBER 24, 2009.

November 24, 2009 Susan M. Brown’s Memorandum of law filed in S. C. as a Response and Brown’s Opposition of Estate’s Motion for Sanction and Contempt.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2680.

November 24, 2009 Susan M. Brown’s Exhibit 1 which is the deed filed to put house in Thompson’s name after the law firm withdrew the previous deed signed by Anna Nicole Smith, this is the deed that caused the problems for everyone that is now being sued by each other in the Bahamas.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2681.

November 24, 2009 Susan M. Brown’s Exhibit 2 October 31, 2006 letter from Tracy Ferguson to Anna Nicole Smith to vacate Horizon’s or be prepared for eviction proceedings.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2682.

November 24, 2009 Susan M. Brown’s Exhibit 3 Default Judgment against Wayne Munroe and Anna Nicole Smith dated November 28, 2006 in regards to Horizon’s in the Bahamas.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2683.

November 24, 2009 Susan M. Brown’s Exhibit 4 Default Injunction that barred Ben Thompson or any representative of his to interfere with Anna Nicole Smith living at Horizons dated November 20, 2006 in the Bahamas.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2684.

November 24, 2009 Susan M. Brown’s Exhibit 5 her affidavit dated November 18, 2009 to file with her memorandum of law responding to Anna Nicole Smith’s Estate filing for contempt and sanctions against her and her law firm.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2685.

November 24, 2009 Brown’s Exhibit 6 which is a copy of the Joint Defense and Confidentiality Agreement with Virgie Arthur filed with Brown’s Response to Anna Nicole Smith’s Estate for Motion for Contempt and sanctions. Brown refers to this in her Memorandum of Law and in her affidavit.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2686.

November 24, 2009 Brown’s Exhibit 8 which is an Affidavit from Neil McCabe on behalf of his client dated November 8, 2009 stating that no person representing his client Virgie Arthur or associated with the law firm made any copies of the hard drives or kept anything from the hard drives and the law firm has respected and kept the common defense and confidentiality in tact at all time.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2687.

I did not put up Exhibit 7 since it is a black and white picture of the hard drives that BDK, Virgie Arthur’s expert in the state suit and we already have a color copy of the same 2 hard drives up in this section and I will link it tomorrow when I do an article on all of this.

November 24, 2009 Brown’s Exhibit 9 which is an affidavit from Teresa Lazzaroni dated Nov. 13, 2009 explaining to the Court how her client Susan M. Brown had kept working copies only of the things contained on 3 flash drives turned over to the Estate attorneys for Anna Nicole Smith and how Brown had paid for her hard drive to be destroyed as requested by Lin Wood during her deposition.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2688.

November 24, 2009 Brown’s Exhibit 10 a copy of the letter from Susan M. Brown to Neil McCabe dated September 25, terminating the Joint Defense and Confidentiality Agreement with Virgie Arthur ONLY on G. Ben Thompson not with Ford Shelley.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2689.

November 24, 2009 Court Order for the South Carolina federal Court allowing Susan M. Brown to withdraw as attorney of record for G. Ben Thompson effective the same date.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2690.

November 24, 2009 Court Order for the South Carolina federal Court issued by agreements of the parties to give G. Ben Thompson time to file a Response to the Motion for Contempt and for Sanctions until November 30 pending against him and for Melodie Thompson, Gaither Thompson III, and Gina Thompson Shelley until November 30 to file their Response to being added as parties.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2691.

November 24, 2009 Susan M. Brown’s Response and Objection to Ms. Brown and her law firm being added to the lawsuit in South Carolina and against the Estate of Anna Nicole Smith filing an Amended Complaint adding her and her firm.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2692.

November 24, 2009 Exhibit 1 which is a letter from Nicole Jennings Wade dated November 29, 2007 verifying that Susan M. Brown did have the hard drives and the only hold up in returning the copies to the Estate was a concern of removal of some of Ford Shelley’s personal files which Ms. Wade assured Ms. Brown the IT department could easily do that once the hard drives were brought to their offices.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2693.

November 24, 2009 Exhibit 2 which is a letter from Nicole Jennings Wade dated September 18, 2008 stating that some of the documents produced by Ford Shelley in response to the Stern – Cosby litigation be returned to their office that Shelley not contact Howard K. Stern again and that they are still waiting for the hard drives to be return so they could meet production requirements for the Estate in the New York pending lawsuit.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2694.

November 24, 2009 Brown Exhibit 4 Copy of Subpoena to Virgie Arthur’s expert BDK dated February 13, 2009 in this case about the hard drives that BDK examined under the Common Defense and Confidentiality between G. Ben Thompson, Ford Shelley and Virgie Arthur.

http://www.rosespeaks.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&op=getit&lid=2695.

I did not put up Exhibit 3 since it is a black and white picture of the hard drives that BDK, Virgie Arthur’s expert in the state suit and we already have a color copy of the same 2 hard drives up in this section and I will link it tomorrow when I do an article on all of this.

©Rose Turner
November 30, 2009
All Rights Reserved, do not reproduce in whole or in part without the express written consent of the author.

The expressions in this blog article are based on the opinions of Rose Turner or our featured authors, please remember we are not lawyers and those opinions expressed here are each of our individual opinions and should not be taken as legal advice and/or legal opinions. The comments following this blog article are the opinions and sole property of the blog site members and do not necessarily reflect those of the site owners.

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Tags: Anna Nicole Smith, BDK computer Forensic, Callendar's Law Firm in the Bahamas, Celebrity Trials, Daniel Smith, Dannielynn, Don Clark ex-FBI, Elizabeth McNamara, Elizabeth McNamara Esq., Estate of Anna Nicole smith, G Ben Thompson, Gathier Thompson III, Gina Thompson Shelley, High Profile Trials, Horizons in the Bahamas, Howard K Stern, L. Lin Wood, Lin Wood, Luke Lantta, Melodie Thompson, Michael Scott of Callendar's Bahamas, Neil McCabe, Nicole Jennings Wade Esq., Pro Pinder Esq. Bahamas, Rita Cosby, Stancil "Ford" Shelley, Susan Brown LLP Atlanta Georgia, Susan M. Brown Esq., Teresa Lazzaroni Esq., The O'Quinn Law Firm, Tracy Ferguson Esq., Tracy Ferguson of Callendar's Bahamas, Virgie Arthur, Wayne Munroe Esq. Bahamas

G. Ben Thompson missed the filing date the Court set of November 3 for his mandatory filing of the Rule 26 f of initial disclosures, also Howard K. Stern’s attorney pointed out that due to Thompson’s attorney being ill they had not been able to hold the required conference via phone.

The Court approved Susan Brown to represent Ben Thompson. Howard K. Stern has attorneys approved for Pro Hac Vice status, including Lin Wood, Luke Lantta, Nicole Jennings Wade of Powell Goldstein as well as his South Carolina attorneys.

The best reading in my opinion is the Rule 26f filings required by the Court of which to date Ben Thompson has not answered. Ford Shelley lists only 3 witnesses, himself, his wife Gina Shelley and Howard K. Stern. However, in Shelley’s rule 26-3-a local rule filings, he lists only himself and his wife Gina Shelly as witnesses or persons that have information relevant to these allegations.

What caught my eye was the list of people who have possessions of some of the items alleged to have been taken out of Horizons the day after Anna Nicole Smith’s death.

1. Defendant Shelley has possession of a copy of a clown video.
2. All documents and tangible items related to litigation in the Bahamas which are in possession of the Bahamian authorities.
3. All documents and tangible items in possession of the California Department of Justice as to any investigation relating to Ms. Smith.
4. All documents and tangible items in possession of co-defendant Ben Thompson and/or his agents.
5. All documents and tangible items in possession of Larry Birkhead and/or his agents.

Which leaves the question of who has the ORIGINAL copy of the infamous Clown Video?

Howard K. Stern’s filing is a tad more revealing about where Stern’s team is going. In his required Rule 26-f list of the following witnesses.

(1) Howard K. Stern
(2) Larry Birkhead
(3) Pol’ Atteau
(4) Rita Cosby
(5) Don Clark
(6) Wilma Vicedomine
(7) Stancil “Ford” Shelley
(8) G. Ben Thompson
(9) Tom Pirtle, on of Virgie Arthur’s Texas lawyer at the burial hearing
(10) Tracy Ferguson an attorney that is part of Callendar’s in the Bahamas that G. Ben Thompson is suing.
(11) Gaither Thompson
(12) Melanie Thompson
(13) Gina Shelley
(14) Representatives of Fox News
(15) Representatives of Biscayne Professional Associates (possibly the company that imaged Anna Nicole Smith’s computers and hard drives when the Estate recovered them)

Howard K. Stern lists several Counts that make the basis of the Estate’s case against Ford Shelly and Ben Thompson and a couple caught my attention.

Count Three: Statutory and common law commercial appropriation of right of publicity:

Under California law, the right of publicity survives the death of a celebrity. Thus, any person who uses a deceased person’s name, voice, signature, photograph, or likeness, in any manner . . . without prior consent from the executor of the deceased person’s estate commercially misappropriates the deceased person’s right of publicity. Cal. Civ. Code § 3344.1.

There can be no dispute that Ms. Smith held a fully descendible right of publicity
in her Estate property. See Cal. Civ. Code § 3344.1. Further, Shelley has admitted to removing documents and materials from Horizons after Ms. Smith’s death. There is no question that these documents and materials are owned by the Estate. Further, there is no dispute that these items removed by Shelley contained Ms. Smith’s name, voice, signature, and photograph. Shelley used the property by, among other things, distributing it to third parties, including media entities. Shelley had no prior consent from the Executor to use the property he stole from Horizons.

Count Six: Violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act:

Whoever knowingly causes transmission of a program, information, code, or command, and as a result of such conduct, intentionally causes damage without authorization, to a protected computer; intentionally accesses a protected computer without authorization, and as a result of such conduct, recklessly causes damage; or intentionally accesses a protected computer without authorization, and as a result of such conduct causes damage and Forensic analyses confirm that Shelley copied and deleted files contained on the password protected computers and external hard drives owned by the Estate, which Shelley unlawfully removed from Horizons. Shelley lacked authorization to access the computers and external hard drives. Shelley’s conduct caused damage and losses in excess of $5,000 in a one-year period. causes losses of at least $5,000 in a one-year period, violates federal statute. 18 U.S.C. §1030(a)(5).

Forensic analyses confirm that Shelley copied and deleted files contained on the
password protected computers and external hard drives owned by the Estate, which Shelley unlawfully removed from Horizons. Shelley lacked authorization to access the computers and external hard drives. Shelley’s conduct caused damage and losses in excess of $5,000 in a one-year period.

Stern’s Local Rule 26-3-a, lists most of the same witnesses with the exception of Wilma Vicedomine which leads to ask when and why did she become involved with Ben Thompson and Ford Shelley?

Howard K. Stern’s lists the following evidence and documents in the same disclosure that he and/or the Estate (Dannielynn Birkhead as the sole heir) might use to prove the claims.

The following categories of documents in the Executor’s possession, custody, or control may be used to support his claims:

(1) All documents referred to in the Complaint.
(2) Documents relating to the investigation into Defendants’ unlawful conduct in the Bahamas.
(3) Media interviews of Defendants.
(4) Communications between Defendants and third parties regarding the factual circumstances that form the basis for the allegations in the Complaint.
(5) Deposition transcripts of third parties in other litigation regarding the factual circumstances that form the basis for the allegations in the Complaint.
(6) Forensic analyses of Ms. Smith’s computers.
(7) Communications from counsel for Defendants which support the factual basis for the allegations in the Complaint.

So folks why did Ben Thompson miss the date of November 3 and has not notified the court or ask for an extension due to one of his lawyers being ill? Who edited the Clown Video and who has the original now? Why is Tom Pirtle listed, but the rest of Virgie Arthur’s legal team in Florida are not? Then we have Don Clark on both disclosures but Wilma Vicedomine as the lone separate person missing in one of the filings.

Could the Clark/Vicedomine investigation lead us from California, to Florida, to New York to South Carolina in the alleged attempts to have Howard K. Stern arrested and tried for something, anything it appears if the filings are to be believed.

Remember you can pick up all of the documents related to the Estate of Anna Nicole Smith suing Ben Thompson and Ford Shelley, opened to ALL, not just members of Rose Speaks.com.

In other news on November 4, 2008 Court Order from Florida that Postpones the Requirement of John O’Quinn and the O’Quinn Law Firm financials until November 10, 2008 the deadline for the two sides to file a Joint Motion to Dismiss with Prejudice.

©Rose Turner
November 5, 2008
All Rights Reserved, do not reproduce in whole or in part without the express written consent of the author.

This article is the sole property of Rose Speaks unless otherwise stated. This article as with other articles is based on the opinion of Rose Turner, or our guest authors if so indicated. Please remember we are not lawyers and those opinions expressed here are each of our individual opinions and should not be taken as legal advice and/or legal opinions. The comments following this article are the opinions and sole property of the site members and do not necessarily reflect those of the site owners.

Please also read our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.

Tags: Anna Nicole Smith, Anna Nicole Smith's Will, Ben Thompson, Biscayne Professional Associates, California Department of Justice, Clark/Vice investigation, Daniel Smith, Dannielynn, Don Clark, Don Clark ex-FBI, Ford Shelley, FOX News, G Ben Thompson, Gaither Thompson, Gina Shelley, Horizons, Horizons in the Bahamas, Horizons lawsuit, Howard K Stern, John "Jay" Patton, John Patton, L. Lin Wood, Lin Wood, Luke Lantta, Melanie Thompson, Nicole Jennings Wade, O'Quinn's Don Clark Ex-FBI, Pol' Atteu, Rita Cosby, Stancil "Ford" Shelley, Tom Pirtle, Tracy Ferguson of Callendar's in the Bahamas