Wednesday, September 15, 2004
NEW YORK - Even at a wrenching moment of surrender, Martha Stewart (news - web sites) was — as always — under impeccable control.
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Reuters
Slideshow: Martha Stewart Case
Stewart Requests Prison 'As Soon as Possible'(AP Video)
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Her announcement Wednesday that she would report to prison as soon as possible came in a light-bathed studio, before a brilliant backdrop of color swatches, perfectly choreographed for television. She lamented that she would miss her beloved pets — cats, dogs, horses, canaries and chickens — and hoped to be free in time for her cherished spring gardening.
"I must reclaim my good life," the 63-year-old millionaire businesswoman declared. "I must return to my good works and allow those around me who work with me to do the same." Her lawyers stressed that her appeal would proceed.
Speaking before a bank of cameras in a cavernous room that her company uses to test recipes and photograph products, Stewart said she hoped to end a period of "immense difficulty, immense sacrifice and immense agony" for herself and her media empire, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc.
Shares in Martha Stewart Living rose 12 cents to close at $11.26 Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange (news - web sites). The stock had been trading around $19 per share before Stewart's name was tied to the scandal.
People close to the domestic entrepreneur said they expected her to report to prison — most likely to a facility in Danbury, Conn., near her home, or possibly in Florida — in a matter of weeks. Her lawyers have asked a federal judge to lift a stay that had been placed on her sentence while she appeals her guilty verdict on charges of lying to investigators about a 2001 stock sale.
After the five months in prison, Stewart still must serve five months of house arrest. She has said she will spend that time — during which she will be allowed to work — at her 153-acre horse-country estate north of New York City.
Her lawyers said they were confident a federal appeals court would eventually overturn the verdict, delivered by a New York jury in March.
But a delay motion filed by Peter Bacanovic, the former stockbroker convicted along with Stewart, means the case will not be argued until next year, and Stewart said she was acting to bring "finality" to a personal nightmare.
"The only way to reclaim my life and the quality of life for all those related to me with certainty now is to serve my sentence — surrender to the authorities so that I can quickly return as soon as possible to the life and the work that I love," she said.
The 10-minute announcement was a striking example of Stewart's trademark image: a tightly controlled one, of good taste, gracious living and self-discipline.
Stewart stood in front of a brilliant backdrop of more than 2,000 color swatches, and to her right was a dining table that looked as if it was about to be used for one of her television programs on entertaining. She was emotional at times, nearly crying at one point.
She spoke wistfully of how much she will miss holiday traditions and her pets — "my two beloved, fun-loving dogs, my seven lively cats, my canaries, my horses and even my chickens."
"It's odd what becomes of immense importance when one realizes when one's freedom is about to be curtailed," she said, "and it is frightening and difficult to have to grasp these realizations."
Stewart added that she would like to be out of prison "as early in March as possible to plant a spring garden and to truly get things growing again."
And she ended with a joke, mentioning how she was walking recently in Manhattan, was recognized by a group of men and heard the comment: "Oh, she's out already."
"I hope that my time goes as fast as that," Stewart said. "I'll see you next year."
As she walked off, disappearing behind a curtain without taking questions, employees of the company stood and applauded.
As in a speech she gave minutes after her July sentencing, Stewart made no reference Wednesday to any wrongdoing. She has maintained she cannot talk about specifics of the case because of her appeal.
It remained unclear where, and precisely when, Stewart would serve her time.
Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum, the federal judge who presided over Stewart's trial and imposed the sentence, recommended a minimum-security facility in Danbury, Conn., near her home in Westport. Her lawyers asked the judge on Wednesday to recommend as second choice the low-security federal prison in Coleman, Fla.
Dan Dunne, a spokesman for the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, said assigning a convict to a prison usually takes "a couple weeks." Stewart's lawyers plan to ask for a speedy decision.
Stewart and Bacanovic were convicted March 5 of lying about why Stewart sold 3,928 shares of ImClone Systems Inc. stock on Dec. 27, 2001, the day before a negative announcement about the company that sent the price plunging.
Federal prosecutors said Stewart sold because she was tipped that her friend, now-imprisoned ImClone founder Sam Waksal, was selling. Stewart and Bacanovic maintained they had a prior deal to sell when the price hit $60.
Stewart's lawyers are pressing an appeal on several fronts, including allegations that one juror lied about an arrest record on a pretrial questionnaire.
They also say the conviction is tainted by perjury charges against Larry Stewart, a government ink expert who testified for the government at the trial. Larry Stewart, no relation to Martha, goes to trial on perjury charges next week.
Federal prosecutors declined comment on Wednesday's events.
The scandal, which broke in the summer of 2002, has been extremely difficult on the company, which produces an array of domestic products, plus television shows, magazines and newspaper columns.
But company executives and appeals lawyers who appeared with Stewart on Wednesday cast her a veritable martyr, repeatedly referring to her selflessness in reporting to prison.
"Her decision brings this matter much closer to the time when she and all of us can truly get back to business as usual," said Thomas Siekman, chairman of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia.
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AP Photo
Reuters
Slideshow: Martha Stewart Case
Stewart Requests Prison 'As Soon as Possible'(AP Video)
Related Quotes
IMCLMSODJIANASDAQS&P 500
53.5511.2610231.361896.521120.37
-0.39+0.12-86.80-18.88-7.96
delayed 20 mins - disclaimer Quote Data provided by Reuters
Missed Tech Tuesday?Want great games? Then play a powerful PC or top-notch laptop. Plus, next-gen consoles promise awesome action.
Her announcement Wednesday that she would report to prison as soon as possible came in a light-bathed studio, before a brilliant backdrop of color swatches, perfectly choreographed for television. She lamented that she would miss her beloved pets — cats, dogs, horses, canaries and chickens — and hoped to be free in time for her cherished spring gardening.
"I must reclaim my good life," the 63-year-old millionaire businesswoman declared. "I must return to my good works and allow those around me who work with me to do the same." Her lawyers stressed that her appeal would proceed.
Speaking before a bank of cameras in a cavernous room that her company uses to test recipes and photograph products, Stewart said she hoped to end a period of "immense difficulty, immense sacrifice and immense agony" for herself and her media empire, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc.
Shares in Martha Stewart Living rose 12 cents to close at $11.26 Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange (news - web sites). The stock had been trading around $19 per share before Stewart's name was tied to the scandal.
People close to the domestic entrepreneur said they expected her to report to prison — most likely to a facility in Danbury, Conn., near her home, or possibly in Florida — in a matter of weeks. Her lawyers have asked a federal judge to lift a stay that had been placed on her sentence while she appeals her guilty verdict on charges of lying to investigators about a 2001 stock sale.
After the five months in prison, Stewart still must serve five months of house arrest. She has said she will spend that time — during which she will be allowed to work — at her 153-acre horse-country estate north of New York City.
Her lawyers said they were confident a federal appeals court would eventually overturn the verdict, delivered by a New York jury in March.
But a delay motion filed by Peter Bacanovic, the former stockbroker convicted along with Stewart, means the case will not be argued until next year, and Stewart said she was acting to bring "finality" to a personal nightmare.
"The only way to reclaim my life and the quality of life for all those related to me with certainty now is to serve my sentence — surrender to the authorities so that I can quickly return as soon as possible to the life and the work that I love," she said.
The 10-minute announcement was a striking example of Stewart's trademark image: a tightly controlled one, of good taste, gracious living and self-discipline.
Stewart stood in front of a brilliant backdrop of more than 2,000 color swatches, and to her right was a dining table that looked as if it was about to be used for one of her television programs on entertaining. She was emotional at times, nearly crying at one point.
She spoke wistfully of how much she will miss holiday traditions and her pets — "my two beloved, fun-loving dogs, my seven lively cats, my canaries, my horses and even my chickens."
"It's odd what becomes of immense importance when one realizes when one's freedom is about to be curtailed," she said, "and it is frightening and difficult to have to grasp these realizations."
Stewart added that she would like to be out of prison "as early in March as possible to plant a spring garden and to truly get things growing again."
And she ended with a joke, mentioning how she was walking recently in Manhattan, was recognized by a group of men and heard the comment: "Oh, she's out already."
"I hope that my time goes as fast as that," Stewart said. "I'll see you next year."
As she walked off, disappearing behind a curtain without taking questions, employees of the company stood and applauded.
As in a speech she gave minutes after her July sentencing, Stewart made no reference Wednesday to any wrongdoing. She has maintained she cannot talk about specifics of the case because of her appeal.
It remained unclear where, and precisely when, Stewart would serve her time.
Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum, the federal judge who presided over Stewart's trial and imposed the sentence, recommended a minimum-security facility in Danbury, Conn., near her home in Westport. Her lawyers asked the judge on Wednesday to recommend as second choice the low-security federal prison in Coleman, Fla.
Dan Dunne, a spokesman for the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, said assigning a convict to a prison usually takes "a couple weeks." Stewart's lawyers plan to ask for a speedy decision.
Stewart and Bacanovic were convicted March 5 of lying about why Stewart sold 3,928 shares of ImClone Systems Inc. stock on Dec. 27, 2001, the day before a negative announcement about the company that sent the price plunging.
Federal prosecutors said Stewart sold because she was tipped that her friend, now-imprisoned ImClone founder Sam Waksal, was selling. Stewart and Bacanovic maintained they had a prior deal to sell when the price hit $60.
Stewart's lawyers are pressing an appeal on several fronts, including allegations that one juror lied about an arrest record on a pretrial questionnaire.
They also say the conviction is tainted by perjury charges against Larry Stewart, a government ink expert who testified for the government at the trial. Larry Stewart, no relation to Martha, goes to trial on perjury charges next week.
Federal prosecutors declined comment on Wednesday's events.
The scandal, which broke in the summer of 2002, has been extremely difficult on the company, which produces an array of domestic products, plus television shows, magazines and newspaper columns.
But company executives and appeals lawyers who appeared with Stewart on Wednesday cast her a veritable martyr, repeatedly referring to her selflessness in reporting to prison.
"Her decision brings this matter much closer to the time when she and all of us can truly get back to business as usual," said Thomas Siekman, chairman of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia.
Story Tools
Email Story
Post/Read Msgs (38194)
Print Story
Ratings: Would you recommend this story?
Not at all 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Highly
Special Feature
Missed Tech Tuesday?Powerful PCs, top-notch laptops, and next-gen consoles
Prev. Story:
Belo Faces Sixth Shareholder Suit (AP)
Next Story:
Stewart Asks to Serve Sentence Soon (AP)
More Business - Top Stories Stories
·
Stocks End Down on Dour Economic Outlook (AP)
·
OPEC tries to calm market by raising quota by one million barrels a day (AFP)
·
Checking In, Sir? (Forbes.com)
·
What A "Fairer" Tax Code Might Look Like (BusinessWeek Online)
·
America loves to hate dastardly CEOs (USATODAY.com)
