Updated, 9:32 a.m. PT, Oct. 16
Gallery Books, who partnered with Simon & Schuster for Pirro’s book, issued the following statement to TheWrap regarding DePaulo’s claims.
“Although we have not yet seen the complaint, nor are we party to it, we emphatically dispute Ms. DePaulo’s characterization of her correspondence with her editor, as described to us.”
Previously
Fox News host Jeanine Pirro was sued on Thursday for allegedly “aggrandizing” and fudging facts in her upcoming Robert Durst tell-all book.
Lisa DePaulo, Pirro’s original collaborator on the book, said that Pirro, a judge who tried to prosecute Durst for murder while serving as a district attorney, had “little regard for truth and accuracy” as she urged her to “describe events and circumstances that never occurred.”
Ultimately, Pirro wanted to create a bombshell book on the alleged murderer and scion of a New York real estate family at the “expense of the truth,” the lawsuit said.
When DePaulo expressed concerns to Pirro that inaccurate information could negatively impact Durst’s pending murder trial in Los Angeles, Pirro allegedly responded that it’s her book, not DePaulo’s.
The lawsuit claimed there are several accounts that were “inconsistent with other evidence” in Durst’s case, which gained new attention this year with the broadcast of the Emmy-winning documentary series “The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst.”
DePaulo also accused an editor at Simon & Schuster of telling her she wouldn’t allow “concern about facts” to delay drafts of the book.
Pirro’s lawyer, David Vigliano, denied the charges, calling DePaulo a “disgruntled former employee.” He added that DePaulo was fired for “nonperformance.”
“She’s doing this for the money and it’s sad,” he said. DePaulo said Pirro owes her $28,750 for her work and and the use of exclusive interviews.
Simon & Schuster, the book’s publisher, didn’t immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
Pirro’s book, “He Killed Them All: Robert Durst and My Quest for Justice,” is due to be released on Nov. 3.