Let's see if we can break this down to figure out whether the Adelson's might have been indirectly funding Magbanua's defense:
1. Magbanua was having trouble scraping together $300 for Sigfredo Garcia's lawyer the day before he was arrested; but
2. When she was arrested, she used Det. Isom's phone to call Tara Kawass on the scene and Kawass' very first act after receiving this troubling news was to call Charlie Adelson's attorney to inform him of Magbanua's arrest and to provide him with Det. Isom's cell number; so
3. Charlie Adelson's attorney calls Det. Isom 20 minutes later, while he's still in the process of booking Magbanua, to ask whether Adelson was also getting arrested.
Ok, that seems a little fishy but it might just be one of those "jet-fuel can't melt steel beams" slogans for the conspiracy theorists to write on their signs and yell about. Lets move on...
4. In the time between not having $300 to her name and her arrest a few months later, Magbanua retains not just one but two private attorneys, and
5. this new attorney just happens to share a mailing address on the same floor of the same penthouse suite as Charlie Adelson's attorney which must just be another coincidence; and
6. Fantastically and just in the nick of time, all of her money troubles seem to be resolved while she's behind bars earning zero dollars and zero cents an hour because someone has entered into private funding agreement for her attorney fees.
7. The State then makes several offers to Magbanua while she's in jail. We don't know the terms of those offers, except that they involve her pleading guilty to something and flipping on the Adelsons. Rivera only got 6.5 years so we can assume her plea would be for even less than that which we later learned was the case when Kawass said she could have been free when her trial started in 2019.
8. Magbanua rejects all offers. Cappleman is extremely puzzled by this event, so much so that she tells the media that Magbanua holds the key to her own freedom. The reason why she goes to the media is because she is not confident that Magbanua's attorneys are even communicating the State's offers to Magbanua.
9. The State then files a pre-trial motion to have the courts compel the Defense to reveal who is funding her defense, alleging that they were being funded by the Adelsons.
10. Judge Harkinson has a 15 minute private hearing in his chambers and was "comfortable that the payments for the attorney fees are being paid by a third party unrelated to the Adelson family." The court declined to disclose to prosecutors who this third party was.
11. Christopher Decoste suggested that the Magbanua's family was funding her Defense. Thats very generous of the family of limited means who were so invested in her defense that they never made a single trip to support Magbanua in either of the two trials. I guess after coming up with $1M+, they couldn't afford the extra gas/hotels? Surely, there must be some records of Magbanua's remortgaging their houses that Decoste can refer us to? If that were true and the poor immigrant family were truly facing extreme financial hardship under the weight of the State who were yet to charge a single rich Adelson, surely the Defense would put this out to the world?
12. Magbanua takes it to a first trial where she is almost convicted of 1st degree murder which carries a sentence of LWOP, with 10 of 12 jurors voting to convict her.
13. One of the jurors who voted against conviction is interviewed and discloses the reasons why she wouldn't convict - which is namely that she believed Magbanua's bottle service lies and how much she could make in tips. Juror also noted that if Jessica Rodriguez testified that Katie was there for the money drop, she mightve voted differently.
14. Okay, surely...its time to stop the madness if you're Magbanua. The State is 100% going to come guns blazing in the 2nd trial. They know where they missed and they now have Magbanua's testimony to use against her to secure a conviction. A "not guilty verdict" is basically impossible; but
15. Nope. She doubles-down and refuses any and all offers from the State again.
16. The only thing that has changed between trials 1 and 2 in terms of financing the Defense is that she has been declared indigent for costs only. Which means that her wealthy benefactor is still paying 100% of her attorney fees but that taxpayers would foot the bill for expert testimony, and court costs (i.e. providing transcripts, paperwork, etc.). Whoever is paying for attorney fees actually increases their commitment in the 2nd trial, as they officially add Kristen Kawass to her Defense team. So that's three private attorney's fees that this third party is funding.
17. The other big change between trials 1 and 2 is the Defense theory. They plan to call Garcia to testify that he and Charlie Adelson planned this whole thing behind Katie's back. This plan is foiled when the jail intercepts and records all the conversations between Kawass, Magbanua and Garcia and turns them over through Discovery after opening arguments have already been made. So the Defense theory is dead in the water, half-way through trial. Time to make a deal!!!?
18. No deal. Magabanua is completely annihilated in Court and is found guilty on all 3 charges which is more than the actual shooter, Sigfredo Garcia was found guilty of.
19. Magbanua will now spend her natural life in prison. She was arrested at 32 years old, so thats about a 60 year sentence...or 57 more years that she would have received if she just retained a public defender with about three hours of litigation experience.
Now.....you can say that only a defendant can make a decision or accept a plea. That is certainly correct. But what you can't say is that the idea that the Adelsons were likely funding her Defense is a conspiracy theory and that if you just ask any attorney they will laugh and explain it all to us plebes. There are several attorneys already on the record who have made that very allegation, not the least of which is the States Attorney's office, David Lat and all of the attorney's at Above the Law who have covered this case, and then our own in-house counsel here at websleuths on this case Mentour Lawyer. In fact, the only qualified attorney saying that the Adelson's weren't funding Magbanua's defense are Magabanua's attorneys....who, we have come to learn, have been known to bend the truth.
sorry - done in Wordpad - you get the extra lines for free. (yes, wordwrap was on).
2. "When she was arrested, she used Det. Isom's phone to call Tara
Kawass on the scene and Kawass' very first act after receiving this
troubling news was to call Charlie Adelson's attorney to inform him
of Magbanua's arrest and to provide him with Det. Isom's cell
number; so.."
COMMENT
No I don't think she used Isom's phone . Police had seized KM's
phone. She asked for it back to make that call (I seem to recall
seeing a video of this happening) . What is very interesting and
very significant is that she had Kawass's number already in the
phone. Either she had already had some preliminary discussions (who
paid?) or CJA gave her that number as a lawyer's number to ring if
she was picked up. If she used her own phone then Kawass has to have
been given Markus's number in whatever meeting was used to set up
Kawass as KM's attorney.
How do you know TK gave out that number ? If KM rang on her own
phone she would not have the number of ISom. Therefore it's far more
likley that CJA would have given Isom's number to D O Marcus
because Wendi was given a police contact card for Isom after her
police interview. (have a look at end of the infamous Wendi
interview - I'm sure Isom hands over his contact details).
This is the more likely scenario. The family was planning for the
worst. The family engaged Gerstein & Baret in 2016 just after SG was
arrested and then refused to pay G and B and this went to a civil
trial because Amex reversed a payment. Amex got sued and lost too in
the same trial. So getting lawyers in position before police come
knocking is Adelson style.
5. this new attorney just happens to share a mailing address on the
same floor of the same penthouse suite as Charlie Adelson's attorney
which must just be another coincidence;
COMMENT - it's been like that for about 18months at this stage. It
enables deCoste to be paid in kind (Markus can bill CJA for
"professional services ") - free rent and he may get access to
secretarial assistance too. The question then is - how are the
ADelsons balancing up this largesse for T Kawass ?
"than that which we later learned was the case when Kawass said she
could have been free when her trial started in 2019."
COMMENT:
I would not believe anything that Kawass says in this area. She
said an indemnity had been offered to KM. The SA's office denies
this and I believe them. THey could prove her guilty via testimny
from Rodriguez . They are not going to offer an indemnity.
RIvera did not get 6.5 years. He got sentenced to 19years. He just
happened to be servicing a Rico sentence for 12.5 years and he was
lucky enought to get concurrent sentencing . That's amazing because
the crimes were completely independent and with different victims.
He should take out tickets in the state lottery. If KM has no other
crime she's serving then the sentence is what it is.
Apart from that I agree with your general argument.
It does intrigue me though - why is deCoste getting the sweetheart
law office deal whereas TK does not get something similar ? Perhaps
she does and it is in Jamacian dollars paid you know where or
perhaps she feels that this case is good for her profile. Or
perhaps TK and CdC were signed up at different rates and this office
bizzo just brings them up to parity because deCoste has been
bitching to DO. Marcus. There's no way that either of them can
safely have direct contact with the Adelsons. It will be interesting
to see if deCoste gets ongoing work helping Kristen Kawass with the
post sentencing pleas for KM (attempts at retrial or trying to get
sentence reduction).