TIGblogs - Dennis Dames

By JUAN MCCARTNEY ~ Guardian Senior Reporter ~ juan@nasguard.com:

During the attempted extortion trial of former Senator Pleasant Bridgewater yesterday, defense attorney Murrio Ducille sought to portray the American attorney of actor John Travolta as a "devious and cunning" man who came to The Bahamas with the intention of entrapping his client.

Ducille also suggested that Bridgewater never directly demanded any money from Travolta and that she was "set up" by the Florida lawyer as she acted in her professional capacity as the attorney of ambulance driver Tarino Lightbourne, now her co-accused.

Bridgewater and Lightbourne are accused of conspiring and attempting to extort $25 million from Travolta after the death of his 16-year-old son Jett Travolta on Grand Bahama on January 2.

Michael McDermott told the court he was acting under the orders of the Royal Bahamas Police Force, which asked him to take part in a sting operation targeting Bridgewater and Lightbourne.

After audio and videotape evidence of separate meetings McDermott held with Bridgewater and Lightbourne was played for the jury yesterday, Ducille rigorously cross examined McDermott, suggesting that he was taking part in "a sham negotiation" and that he had contradicted previous evidence he had given to the court.

Last week McDermott testified that he had no intention of paying Lightbourne, yet he told Bridgewater during a recorded conversation on January 18 that he "didn't mind rewarding" Lightbourne for bringing the matter to Travolta's attention.

Ducille also pointed out that McDermott told Bridgewater on January 18 that he came to The Bahamas to buy Lightbourne's silence.

McDermott, who also denied he was taking part in a sham negotiation, said that he was making the deal on the advice of the police department.

"I was speaking on behalf of The Bahamas police department, who told me to make the deal. And also Mr. Travolta," McDermott said.

Ducille also suggested that the video evidence showed McDermott making threats against Lightbourne.

"I was making threats against his name," McDermott said.

Ducille also said that McDermott issued a threat against Lightbourne when he gave the analogy of slaughtering swine during his negotiations with Bridgewater on January 19.

"Tell him that you can maybe get a million bucks in cash and property done discreetly, okay, and if that's fine for him," McDermott told Bridgewater during a videotaped meeting in his hotel room at the Sheraton Resort on Cable Beach in January. "If not, tell him that there's a concept in the United States called the pig principle, okay? It says 'pigs get fat and hogs get slaughtered'. So what it means (is) that he can be a pig and we'll take care of him. If he becomes a hog, he's done okay?"

McDermott told Ducille that it was tax terminology in the U.S. where he practices as a commercial litigator.

On Friday, Ducille suggested that McDermott's "sole mission" was to set Bridgewater up, and that he came to the country with "evil in his heart."

McDermott said that when he told police about the alleged plot on January 18, law enforcement officials suggested that he meet with Bridgewater in his hotel room, which would be outfitted with monitoring devices.

When asked last week if he felt threatened by anyone in The Bahamas, McDermott said, "No, the threats were against Mr. Travolta, not me. I love The Bahamas."

Ducille contended that McDermott orchestrated the entire series of events.

The two men had a number of heated exchanges last week, and on Thursday testimony escalated into a shouting match that prompted Senior Justice Anita Allen to stop proceedings and leave her court for a brief period of time.

She issued a stern warning on Friday, and constantly reminded the men to refrain from making extraneous comments yesterday.

Tuesday October 6, 2009

thenassauguardian

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