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Con Man's Plea May Spare His Wife
The Recorder
October 15, 2008
Michael Edison, a con man who stole $2 million from the widow of a legendary law firm founder, has agreed to spend more than five years in jail.
But Edison's wife -- an alleged accomplice in trying to obstruct justice by deceiving Edison's own lawyer -- may get no prison time at all.
The strange crime drama took a key step toward resolution Tuesday, when Edison pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William Alsup and admitted to all the counts leveled against him. His lawyer, Richard Mazer, and federal prosecutors agreed to a deal that included 63 months in prison and roughly $2.5 million in restitution.
The government also agreed that it would not seek any custodial time for Deborah Edison in the event she pleaded guilty. However, she may not even reach that point: A doctor tentatively found her incompetent to stand trial, said her lawyer, Chief Assistant Federal Defender Geoffrey Hansen. Should that determination become final, the government could dismiss her counts, Hansen said.
Michael Edison admitted targeting Jean Phleger, widow of Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison founder Atherton Phleger, in a financial swindle. Originally introduced to Phleger by her son-in-law, the actor Don Johnson, Edison agreed to refinance Phleger's house, pay down her old mortgage, and use $2 million in leftover cash to pay Phleger's bills.
But Edison instead used the money for a private jet, a boat docked in Malta, cars, and goods at Kmart, Foot Locker and other stores, according to court filings.
Describing his occupation in court Tuesday as "an entrepreneur, really, or a turn-around executive," Edison also admitted cheating another set of business partners out of $182,000.
Prosecutors indicted Edison last year for mail fraud. He landed in Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, unable to make bail.
Edison then set out to deceive prosecutors, sending a letter to his wife -- who was living in Switzerland -- with instructions to dummy up documents to make it seem that Phleger loaned Edison the money. Deborah Edison sent the false papers to Edison's attorney, Michael Thorman of Bonjour Thorman Baray & Billingsley, and let Thorman present them to Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Finnigan.
But jail officials had already intercepted Edison's instructions to his wife. Their maneuvers led to charges against her for obstruction of justice, Thorman getting bounced from the case, and additional counts tacked on to Edison's indictment.
A 60-month sentence on the obstruction count will run concurrent with Edison's mail fraud penalty. Thorman did not return a call late Tuesday afternoon.
Alsup is not bound by Edison's deal, so if the judge recommends a higher sentence than 63 months, Edison could opt out of the entire agreement. The judge is also not bound to follow the government's recommendation and spare Deborah Edison from time behind bars.
"If she goes to prison, that is not a basis for Mr. Edison to get out of his plea agreement," Alsup said.
Since Edison has been in custody since the beginning of last year, and sentencing is set for January 2009, he could get nearly two years of credit for time already served. After the proceeding, Mazer declined to speculate as to how much Edison's sentence may have been ramped up because of his obstruction.
"Who knows? You can ask the government what they think," he said.
A U.S. Attorney spokesman declined to comment on the sentencing.
