Lawyers for David Letterman have gone to court in New Mexico to quash a restraining order obtained by a Santa Fe woman who said he had used code words to indicate he wanted to marry her and train her to be a co-host, The Associated Press reported. The temporary restraining order was granted to Colleen Nestler, who alleged that Mr. Letterman had forced her to go bankrupt and inflicted "mental cruelty" and "sleep deprivation" on her since 1994. She asked that Mr. Letterman, who tapes his "Late Show" in New York, stay at least three yards from her and not "think of me, and release me from his mental harassment and hammering." In a motion filed on Mr. Letterman's behalf, Pat Rogers, an Albuquerque lawyer, wrote, "Celebrities deserve protection of their reputation and legal rights when the occasional fan becomes dangerous or deluded." Saying that the restraining order is without merit, Mr. Letterman's lawyers asked District Court Judge Daniel Sanchez to quash it. A hearing on the request for a permanent restraining order was set for Jan. 12.
December 22, 2005
What does it take to get a restraining order?
Do the judges apply any judgment at all?
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6 comments:
David Letterman is sending secret signals to the Judge to come to NYC and be his cue-card guy. So the judge has sympathy for the woman's plight.
I just got beamed to an alternate universe where the inmates do, in fact, run the asylum.
(Gobsmacking to the point of mouthdropping)
The only thing I can think is that the judge was trying to humor this woman? The more you read about this, the more obvious it is that what this woman needs is serious psychiatric care, not a kind pat on the hand. Kindness can be cruelty.
Or maybe "restraining order" was the judge's way of signalling the bailiff with "code words" that really meant "involuntary committal."
A judicious application of common sense would seem to have been in order while adjudicating this matter.
That this judge chose not to speaks to some of the problems with our courts as they are currently constructed.
Was the judge trying to avoid being judgemental?
When Mark above points out, "Judges have told me that they dare not fail to approve the TRO then have something tragic happen to the petitioner" that sounds parallel to the practice of 'defensive medicine' that you hear so many doctors complaining of having to do.
Just as defensive medicine has real costs in vast inefficiencies so does defensive jurisprudence. There are a finite number of lawyers and judges with finite resources and finite time, the preliminary judge was in a position and had the authority to end this time waster there and then, not to do so, regardless of the reasoning, resembles incompetence when viewed from outside the legal profession.
At least that's my view of things as someone with no connection to law other than as a citizen who must live by the laws as written.
I have not gone near my husband since he sent me to the hospital in March of 2004. I decided never to go near him after this (he left me in October of 2003).I have documented instances of bruises on my arms from him. I do not wish to speak to him live, ever, so we devised a method of leaving each other messages. (We have three children and ongoing financial issues.)In July of 2005, I felt that he had again emotionally abused my youngest daughter, and attempted to leave him a message cautioning him about this. He kept picking up the phone and taunting me and trying to fight with me, so I kept hanging up until he let it go to message. Then in August, September and October I started getting repeated calls from a credit card which we share, and for which I write him a check every month. Clearly he wasn't paying the bill. I called him to ask about it and he simply ignored me. I kept calling him about this bill. The last message I left him said that I understood he was angry at me (he cheated on me, by the way, and is angry because I got angry about it. I swear before God this is true) and that I would go to mediation with him. (I have not divorced him because I have Stage IV breast cancer and will have not insurance if we divorce. I put him through school to get his degrees, the whole magilla and he left me when my cancer came back.)The next day a cop came to my door with a TRO. My husband didn't win, but it cost me a LOT of money to defend against it.
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