Courtesy of JFXonline.com
Ghalib plead no contest in a Van Nuys, Calif. courthouse today. The judge ordered him to serve 45 days in jail, do 45 days of community service and be on probation for three years says JFXonline. He has until Nov. 26 to begin serving his sentence.
The felony charges stem from an altercation with a process server who claims Ghalib tried to run him over with his car last February. Ghalib had consistently plead not guilty. Ghalib had been charged with three counts per a court order: Assault with a deadly weapon (his Mercedes), battery with serious bodily injury and hit and run causing death or injury.
Judge Susan Speer ordered the final sentence. She is by coincidence, the same judge who dismissed a charge of hit and run against Spears two years ago. A correspondent for The Associated Press reported in Oct. 2007 that Spears had already settled out of court and the owner of the car that was hit did not want to press charges.
Ghalib yet faces a civil suit against him by process server Ram Moskowitz, say court records. Moskowitz seeks punitive and exemplary damages.
Ghalib’s lawyer says that punitive and exemplary damages in this case are unlawful, improper and wrongfully brought. He says that Moskowitz did not conduct himself in a manner ordinarily expected of prudent persons and is responsible for what happened, according to court filings. The next legal proceeding is scheduled for Dec. 2, 2009.
Fair News Spears still plans to further explore what might have been on videotape that vanished from the Internet without explanation which documented Ghalib’s first formal court appearance on the felony charges. Fair News Spears has the court transcript from that day and based on Ghalib’s attorney’s observation to the judge, the district attorney on the case was being directed by Jamie Spears and co-conservator Andrew Wallet.
Update: (Oct. 12) Jane Robeson, the news secretary of the District Attorney’s office, says that the Los Angeles Times (and others) got the information for their story from a press release posted to the District Attorney’s general web site late Friday afternoon.
She said the LA Times added her name to their story, but that what they wrote is correct. The judge will make the final pronouncement as to the number of days Ghalib will serve but meanwhile judge the accuracy and fairness of the reporting for yourself:
“VAN NUYS – A former boyfriend of singer Britney Spears pleaded no contest today to leaving the scene of an accident after he allegedly drove his car towards a man serving a restraining order against him on Feb. 11.” Press release, Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office.
v.
“Ghalib drove his car toward the victim and then drove away, according to Jane Robison, a district attorney spokeswoman.
–Richard Winton” The Los Angeles Times
I left a follow-up message with Robeson to ensure she knows that not only was her name added to a story but she was misquoted afterall. Also left a message with the LA Times reporter to try to understand.
Correction: Fair News Spears earlier ran the headline, “Felony charges dismissed against Adnan Ghalib.” This was incorrect if TMZ’s later report that the hit and run charge remained. The Los Angeles Times confirms.
story still developing… as to whether some reporters got their information based on the maximum one could be served rather than what was agreed on. The Los Angeles Times and TMZ are both saying he could serve up to one year and that he is back for sentencing November 20. Fair News Spears considers JFXOnline to be a reliable source.
Update Oct. 19:Tom Powell is the director of the justice study program at Paradise Valley Community College in Arizona. He says that once a plea bargain arrangement is agreed to that the number of days in the sentence will not change if both sides keep up their side of the agreement. He says this is true from state to state.
He says that a district attorney’s office will post the maximum sentence to deter others from attempting the same crime. This may explain why JFXonline’s story said Ghalib would serve 45 days while others reported he could face up to a year.
He never hit the guy though, right? He just drove toward him. How is that a hit and run?
Good question. I’ll add how does know anyone know as a statement of fact what happened if the case never went to trial. In other words, Friday’s court session was a continuation of the case management process as I understand it. It never went to trial. The case was never heard by a jury, and pleading no contest is not the same thing as an admission of guilt. I will ask media relations on Monday.
I am also curious why media has failed to get the whole story: Adnan Ghalib had already been served with the same papers Moskowitz was “allegedly” trying to hand him. Moskowitz’s sworn declaration that he furnished in support of a temporary restraining order against Ghalib is public record. Without a jury or judge declaring Ghalib’s guilt I fail to understand statements by anyone of what he did or didn’t do.
I plan to run the Moskowitz story soon and detail what no one in the world has reported on Ghalib and why he may have had good to fear two men still watching him from an alleyway. I myself would be leery of people continuing to survey me after I had already been served.
Side note: Judy Galbraith is a professional journalist and the director of the journalism program at Paradise Valley Community College. I did not ask her to make comment but am glad to have her ear and professional opinion.
Hi Carmela:
I like how you handle the slight correction to your original headline. You make the explanation clear but without fanfare. Just tell what happened and move on. However, I don’t understand the correction itself. You seem to be saying that a third felony charge of hit-and-run is still pending, and you link to two stories to support that. But neither story makes such a reference. While it’s not explained in the D.A. news release, my guess (based on prior crime coverage experience) is the hit-and-run charge was reduced to the leaving-the-scene misdemeanor charge to which Ghalib pleaded no contest. And then other two felony charges will be dismissed when he’s sentenced(assuming he doesn’t do anything to anger the court before then). You might want to ask the DA spokeswoman specifically about this, and provide additional clarification.
Keep up the good work!
Le Templar
PVCC Puma Press blogs adviser
Le, thank you. Sorry for confusion. There were three felony charges: Assault with a deadly weapon; battery with serious bodily injury; hit and run causing death or injury.
I do have a call into the D.A. media relations department. Is that how you would do it? It’s what I was directed to do starting off.
I am a little concerned now because the question I left for Jane Robison, who quoted as though they had actually talked to her, has gone without response this week. I was following through on your thought to theory that they “might have talked” and that she hadn’t understood my initial inquiry.
This time I left the message asking whether Richard Winton had actually talked to her, i.e., interviewed her last Friday. No response which is unusual for Jane in my experience with her. You recall that on Monday she said they must have added her name to the article by Winton? And that they got their information from the press release? I haven’t heard a peep since I phoned in to be clear she knew Winton had omitted a key word from his reporting: alleged.
If Adnan was somehow able to go through this whole experience with only a misdemeanor conviction for leaving the scene of an accident- he would be so lucky but I have a feeling the DA forced him to plead to one felony count. I do not know why they would charge Adnan with three serious felonies only to plead to 1 misdemeanor count.
I was just thinking about the actress Rebecca Gayhart (Sp?). She is not incredibly famous but a few years back she hit a little boy with her car killing him. I know she pled to some charge only received probabation even though she killed someone.
That case really puts into perspective Adnan’s situation. No one died; Ram was not too seriously injured, I mean he is not permanently disabled. A long jail sentence for Adnan would probably be too severe.