Astor son, 88, loses appeal, could face prison

NEW YORK (AP) — New York philanthropist Brooke Astor’s 88-year-old son has lost an appeal that kept him out of prison after he was convicted of plundering her fortune.

The state Supreme Court’s Appellate Division ruled Tuesday that Anthony Marshall’s 2009 conviction was based on legally sufficient evidence. Appeals judges also rejected Marshall’s argument that his age and illness warranted sparing him prison.

Marshall was sentenced to at least a year in prison, but he was allowed to stay free on bail during the appeal. It’s not clear whether Marshall will now have to report to prison or may appeal further and remain free on bail.

Lawyer John Cuti says Marshall is exploring his legal options.

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Astor son, 88, loses appeal, could face prison

Brooke Astor home auction fetches $18.8M in NYC

NEW YORK (AP) — An auction of the contents of philanthropist Brooke Astor’s two homes brought in over $18.8 million, Sotheby’s said Tuesday.

Sotheby’s offered 901 objects in all, including European and Asian furnishings, Old Masters, Qing Dynasty paintings, tea sets, silverware, jewelry, a porcelain menagerie, more than 100 dog paintings and even the uniforms of her domestic staff at a two-day auction that began Monday.

Proceeds will go to institutions and charities, including the New York Public Library and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, under a settlement negotiated by the state attorney general’s office.
The collection had expected to fetch just $6 million to $9 million.

The sale concluded Tuesday evening with a selection of jewelry from Astor’s personal collection. Among the highlights was Astor’s emerald engagement ring, which sold for more than $1.2 million.

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Brooke Astor home auction fetches $18.8M in NYC

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Too Sick for Court?

The Astor Settlement: Anthony Marshall’s Friends and Family React

As the only child of New York’s beloved white-gloved philanthropist Brooke Astor, Anthony Marshall spent years preoccupied with how much he would inherit from his mother, who eventually died at age 105 in 2007. He envisioned a life in which he and his much younger third wife, Charlene, would not only live well but also have the pleasure of passing out the tens of millions left behind by his stepfather Vincent Astor, wielding clout on boards like the Metropolitan Museum.

But on Wednesday, Marshall, who was convicted three years ago of defrauding his mother’s estate, agreed to accept a settlement of a relatively paltry (for him) $14.4 million. Not only is this less than half of the riches that he expected, but the 87-year-old former ambassador also gave up all rights to distribute his mother’s charitable legacy. Since the four law firms that handled his criminal trial and probate fight have filed judgments totaling $11.6 million against him, he will not be awash in cash. “Mr. Marshall is pleased that a settlement has been reached,” his longtime lawyer Kenneth Warner wrote in a statement. “He is almost 88 years old and much prefers closure to an expensive and protracted litigation over his mother’s estate.”

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The Astor Settlement: Anthony Marshall’s Friends and Family React

Settlement Reached in Brooke Astor Estate Battle

Brooke Astor’s only son saw his inheritance slashed in half and had his control of the estate’s powerful charitable contributions stripped away as part of a settlement that ended a bitter, five-year dispute over the family’s millions.

The settlement, ratified on Wednesday in Westchester County Surrogate’s Court, also lays out how Mrs. Astor’s roughly $100 million fortune will be distributed: $30 million will go toward the creation of a Brooke Astor Fund for New York City Education, and millions more will go to Prospect Park, Central Park, city playgrounds and various cultural institutions.

The settlement, which exposed bitter splits in one of New York society’s historically glamorous families, was most noteworthy for what it took away from Mrs. Astor’s son, Anthony D. Marshall.

Mr. Marshall, 87, who was convicted three years ago of stealing from her in the later years of her life, had his inheritance cut to $14.5 million from about $31 million. In addition, he and his wife, Charlene, will not be able to choose which charities receive bequests from Mrs. Astor’s estate or how those bequests are to be used.

The settlement, negotiated by the office of Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman, is binding, regardless of what happens with Mr. Marshall’s criminal appeal.

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Settlement Reached in Battle Over Brooke Astor’s Estate

>Anthony Marshall Appeals

>Brooke Astor’s 86-year-old son doesn’t want to go to prison for stealing from his mom – and he’s using her words to try and reverse his blockbuster conviction.

Anthony Marshall’s lawyers filed an 89-page legal brief with a New York appeals court Monday [4/18/11]in an attempt to get his 2009 guilty verdict tossed.

Marshall, who is out on bail, was convicted of looting his famous mother’s $185 million fortune so he could leave it to his wife, Charlene, who Astor despised.

He was sentenced to one to three years.

The appeal papers attempt to refute prosecutors’ assertions at trial that Astor was so out of it by 2004 that she didn’t know what she was doing when she signed money over to her son.

“Brooke told \[a member of her household staff\] that Mrs. Marshall would be a very rich woman one day,” the papers state–suggesting that Astor was clear-headed at the time.

The beloved philanthropist was 105 when she died in 2007.

In the legal papers, defense lawyers John Cuti and Kenneth Warner seek to overturn the convictions of Marshall and his co-defendant, disbarred estate lawyer Francis Morrissey – and want the indictment lodged against them tossed out completely. “This trial resulted in a miscarriage of justice,” the papers state.

The lawyers claim that sending “an old sick man” to prison is “out of all proportion to the offense, even assuming guilt.” They called the crimes “relatively minor.”

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Convicted Brooke Astor Son Anthony Marshall Fights to Overturn Guilty Verdict

>Mickey Rooney Speaks at National Summit

>Elder Financial Protection Network held its 8th annual Call to Action conference and awards ceremony at Mission Bay Conference Center at UCSF.

Veteran actor, Mickey Rooney, provided an emotional speech drawing tears and three standing ovations from the crowd of nearly 300 representatives of financial institutions, social services, law enforcement, legal professionals and elder justice advocates. “I am here today as the voice of millions of senior citizens to tell you that ending elder abuse is of critical importance.” Rooney said, “No one ever thinks they will be in this position in their lifetime, but the statistics are staggering, and they paint an unsettling picture. Whether the abuse is physical, emotional or financial, it is an unbelievable reality that often sneaks up on you without warning.”

Philip Marshall, elder justice advocate and grandson of New York philanthropist Brooke Astor delivered compelling testimony and called for increased national collaboration to fight this growing crime. He said, “While my grandmother was emotionally and financially abused and isolated, her case is far from isolated; there are millions of victims, today, suffering similar injury.”

Rooney read the Call to Action Proclamation which calls upon Congress to authorize the postmaster general to issue a special elder abuse postage stamp; to fund the Elder Justice Act and requests that the President issue a proclamation declaring June 15, 2012 World Elder Abuse Awareness Day and to light the White House Purple on this day. More than 200 participants followed Rooney’s lead and signed the poster-sized proclamation. An online petition was launched at the event through the EFPN’s website http://www.bewiseonline.org.

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Actor Mickey Rooney Speaks at National Summit on Elder Financial Abuse in San Francisco

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Elder Financial Protection Network

6th Annual ‘Call to Action’ Conference

Philip Marshall’s quest to protect his famous and wealthy grandmother Brooke Astor from devastating financial abuse put a national spotlight on a problem that a recent MetLife study, Broken Trust, found costs American seniors $2.6 billion annually.

Marshall will share his story in the keynote address at the Elder Financial Protection Network’s (EFPN) 6th annual Call to Action conference and awards ceremony on March 25, 2010 in San Francisco.

This year’s meeting comes at a time not only of increased attention to the problem of elder financial abuse, thanks to the media coverage of the Astor case, but also one of increased risk of financial abuse of seniors because of the current economic downturn. These factors combined with the progress being made toward passing a national Elder Justice Act, could make this year a watershed moment for the problem of elder financial abuse.

Marshall will join 10 other speakers at this year’s event, which will bring together experts and community advocates from across the country for a day-long learning experience on the growing crime of elder financial abuse. Several hundred representatives of financial institutions, law enforcement, elder justice advocates and the legal community are expected to attend the event.

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6th Annual Call to Action Event to Spotlight Prominent Elder Abuse Case of Brooke Astor

Anthony Marshall Sentenced to 1-3 years

Anthony D. Marshall, who was convicted of siphoning millions from his mother, Brooke Astor, was sentenced Monday to one to three years in prison.

Justice A. Kirke Bartley Jr. said Mr. Marshall, who is 85, must report to prison on Jan. 19.

The sentence was for the most serious of 14 counts on which Mr. Marshall was convicted: first-degree grand larceny, for giving himself a retroactive lump-sum raise of about $1 million for managing his mother’s finances. Justice Bartley also sentenced Mr. Marshall to one year on each of the 13 other charges he was convicted of, to run at the same time as the longer sentence.

If Mr. Marshall has a good record in prison, he is likely to serve roughly eight months behind bars. He showed no response as Justice Bartley read the sentence, although his wife, Charlene, was heard to sob from her seat in the courtroom.

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Brooke Astor’s Son Sentenced to Prison

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Tony Marshall Sentencing Today

Tony Marshall Sentencing Today

If come Monday, Judge A. Kirke Bartley Jr. decides to sentence Tony Marshall, Brooke Astor’s son, to prison for stealing from his mother, by law the 85 year old Marshall will have at least one year — and as many as 25 years — in the solitude of a jail cell (or hospital ward if his health is as precarious as his lawyer says it is) to contemplate where things went so wrong.

The People vs. Anthony Marshall and Francis Morrissey is a textbook case in how not to defraud your incredibly rich, famous and beloved mother’s estate if you don’t want to get caught.

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The People vs. Anthony Marshall and Francis Morrissey: The Butler Gives Notice

Elder Abuse not Limited to Just the Rich

An Associated Press story in The Patriot-News, “Case highlights elder abuse,” (Oct. 18) discussed how aging and wealthy New York socialite Brooke Astor was exploited by her son, Anthony Marshall.

In October, Marshall was convicted of defrauding his mother and stealing millions of dollars from her $200 million fortune as she suffered from Alzheimer’s disease. This case is a reminder that seniors are at risk for exploitation and abuse and might be vulnerable to the very people in whom they place their trust.

This risk is not limited to wealthy socialites. The physical, emotional and financial abuse of our elders is a state and national concern.

With two million residents over age 65, Pennsylvania ranks third in the country in senior population. We need our seniors, and we must exert attention and vigilance to protect this highly valued generation.

How can we prevent elder abuse? Fortunately, many resources provide protection for our older loved ones besides relatives, friends and neighbors serving as the eyes and ears on the front line of defense.

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Elder Abuse is not Limited to Rich Like Brooke Astor