Posted on 01/24/2007 10:16:28 PM PST by NormsRevenge
NEW YORK (Reuters) - As with most gossip, the full story of the New York Post writer investigated on suspicion he tried to extort a billionaire to keep his name out of the paper may never be known.
Nine months after Jared Paul Stern, a contributor to New York's premiere gossip column Page Six in the Post, himself became tabloid fodder, federal prosecutors have dropped the case.
Stern and his lawyer said on Wednesday they had been told by the U.S. Attorney's office that prosecutors will no longer pursue the investigation.
That clears Stern legally, but he says his career is left in shambles.
"I don't think I'll ever get my reputation fully restored," Stern, 35, said from his home in upstate New York, where he said he was forced to "retreat" to when the story broke in April. "I have been pretty much unemployable because there was this cloud overhead."
In April the Post's main rival, the New York Daily News, reported details of Stern's face-to-face meeting with supermarket magnate Ron Burkle that had been recorded in an undercover FBI operation.
Stern was caught on videotape offering various "levels of protection" to Burkle, who had been the target of a series of false gossip-column items about his love life, according to the News.
When Burkle, a friend of former President Bill Clinton, asked "How much do you want?" Stern asked for $100,000 up front and $10,000 a month, the News said.
Stern declined to comment but said he may fight back in court -- and perhaps with a book. The U.S. Attorney's office said it would not confirm nor deny whether there was an investigation.
Stern's lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, said in a statement Stern would be filing "major civil suits" against Burkle and others for defamation.
Burkle spokesman Mike Sitrick said the businessman had no problem with the case being dropped. Burkle followed the advice of federal investigators all along, starting with the moment he first told them that Stern asked for money, Sitrick said.
"Mr. Burkle didn't question their decisions previously and he isn't going to start doing so now," the spokesman said.
Stern said he is writing a book that will be "partly a memoir, partly about the gossip business."
OMG Bookmark!
Because I detest Burkle, my support falls to Stern by default. Ack!
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