After a longish hearing Friday the three defendants accused of conspiring to illegally supply the late actress Anna Nicole Smith with a staggering variety of sedatives and painkillers got their trial date: Aug 4.
Smith's former doctor Sandeep Kapoor, ex-boyfriend Howard K. Stern and psychiatrist Khristine Eroshevich (pictured first, third and seventh from left) all appeared in good spirits before the pretrial hearing began in Dept. 102 of the Criminal Courts Building.
The superficial bonhomie between prosecutors and defense attorneys will undoubtedly erode during the courtroom clashes that lie ahead. A possible indication of how far apart the two sides are in their perceptions of the case may have been revealed when Judge David Wesley asked defense attorney Steven Sadow and Deputy D.A. Sean Carney how long they thought the trial will last.
Sadow: About six weeks.
Carney. I'd say three months.
Wesley: Three months? In here? Not in this court.
The players in this drama will next meet with Judge Wesley at an April 23 hearing.
