Man Blamed For Travolta Mistrial Summoned To Court
By WENNFriday, October 23, 2009
The man blamed for the mistrial of JOHN TRAVOLTA’s longrunning extortion case has been ordered to appear in court.
Senior Justice Anita Allen has summoned Bahamas politician Picewell Forbes to explain why he should not be held in contempt of court after allegedly announcing to the media at a political convention that defendant Pleasant Bridgewater had been acquitted.
Bridgewater, a former Bahamas senator, and paramedic Tarino Lightbourne are accused of a plot to extort $25 million (£17.2 million) from Travolta and his wife Kelly Preston after their 16-year-old son Jett suffered a fatal seizure at the family’s holiday home in January (09).
They reportedly threatened to release a Refusal of Treatment/Transportation form which Travolta signed after requesting paramedics to drive his son to the airport. He initially believed it would be faster to fly his injured son to a hospital in Florida for treatment, but subsequently changed his mind.
Bridgewater and Lightbourne, who both pleaded not guilty, allegedly planned to leak the document to the press, suggesting Travolta’s actions delayed treatment for his son.
But the case was declared a mistrial because the jury was still deliberating over the verdicts when Forbes reportedly made the announcement, which aired on TV and radio.
Forbes’ attorney insists the politician “had no intention of disrupting the legal proceedings and had simply relayed what turned out to be bogus news that he heard on the convention floor”.
He has been ordered to appear in court on Friday (23Oct09).
