LOS ANGELES (AP) — Hollywood has seen its share of blockbusters this summer thanks to pillaging pirates, talking cars and returning superheroes.
But an off-screen saga starring a Hollywood private eye accused of running a widespread wiretapping scheme hasn’t lived up to its billing.
Federal prosecutors said months ago that at least one more indictment was coming in the case against private detective Anthony Pellicano and 13 other suspects charged with conspiracy, wire fraud and other crimes.
The disclosure ignited speculation on movie sets and in corporate offices about who might be indicted next. But no new defendants have been named since “Die Hard” director John McTiernan was charged in early April.
Now, the case has lost its sizzle and sent the entertainment industry searching for scandal elsewhere.
“The beef on the bun has been smaller than the promotion,” said publicist Michael Levine, who has represented pop star Michael Jackson and actor Charlton Heston, among others.
“Right now what is being talked about is all the hype associated with this,” he said.
The initial indictment against Pellicano was unsealed in early February and detailed a shady underside of Hollywood where wiretaps were used to get dirt for threats, blackmail and in some cases to secure a tactical advantage in litigation.
It included allegations that Pellicano had illegally wiretapped the phones of Hollywood stars such as Sylvester Stallone and bribed police officers to run the names of more than 60 people, including comedians Garry Shandling and Kevin Nealon, through government databases.
More charges followed.
Among them, Terry Christensen, a prominent Hollywood attorney who represented billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, was accused of paying Pellicano at least $100,000 to illegally listen in on conversations involving Lisa Bonder Kerkorian during a 2002 court battle with the mogul over child support.
Christensen has denied wrongdoing.
Hollywood Records president Robert Pfeifer admitted hiring Pellicano to wiretap the phone of his former girlfriend. And McTiernan pleaded guilty to making false statements to an FBI agent about hiring Pellicano to wiretap a producer on his 2002 box-office flop “Rollerball.”
Both are awaiting sentencing.
Federal authorities also questioned prominent entertainment attorney Bert Fields and studio bosses Brad Grey of Paramount Pictures and Ron Meyer of Universal Studios about their connections to Pellicano.
But thus far, no A-listers have been named as suspects, and nearly all the defendants are bit players.
The case has been slowed as authorities struggle to decrypt hundreds of recorded telephone calls recovered during searches of Pellicano’s offices.
Prosecutors have said in court they have at least one wiretapped conversation, and that some of the calls involve Pellicano allegedly speaking to clients and others about wiretaps.
Prosecutors declined to comment further on the recordings or other aspects of the case.
They face two challenges when considering additional indictments: proving Pellicano’s clients knew the detective was doing something illegal and ensuring that the wiretap evidence falls within the five-year statute of limitations. Many of the calls listed in the indictment occurred between 1999 and 2002.
Defense attorneys are challenging the validity of the search warrants, claiming they were a ruse to get inside Pellicano’s offices and look for suspected wrongdoing. They also have complained that federal prosecutors haven’t turned over all the evidence as part of the discovery process.
The disputes led U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer to postpone the trial until Feb. 13.
Pellicano has pleaded not guilty and is anxious to go to trial, said his attorney, Steven Gruel. However, Gruel believes his client won’t have to stand trial at all if he can convince a judge the search warrants and resulting evidence should be thrown out.
As the case languishes without star power, Hollywood has turned its attention to new scandals such as Mel Gibson’s drunken driving case.
Legal experts believe the wiretapping case could regain the spotlight if high-profile stars are called to testify during the trial.
“You could still have the parade of Hollywood witnesses even if you don’t have further indictments,” said Laurie Levenson, a former federal prosecutor and professor at Loyola Law School.
“This is the most egregious civilian wiretapping case I can think of. If you just put Pellicano behind bars, it was worth it,” she said.
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