Posted on 08/18/2002 6:09:18 PM PDT by LarryLied
The public relations executive plans to plead guilty Friday and serve her time at a special lockup for drunken drivers, sources familiar with the case told the Daily News.
Grubman, 31, has agreed to spend a minimum of two months at the dormitory-style DWI Alternative Facility in Yaphank, L.I., the sources said.
As part of the deal, she will have to perform community service after she's sprung from the minimum-security program.
Grubman's lawyers met for 40 minutes Friday with the special prosecutor and the new judge, Michael Mullen, to hammer out the plea deal.
Not final yet
But sources cautioned it's possible the deal could fall through or be changed if lawyers involved in the civil case against Grubman strongly object.
The Yaphank facility is a last chance for hard-core DWI felons, and drunken-driving groups could raise a fuss if first-time offender Grubman gets in.
Defense lawyer Stephen Scaring and prosecutors declined to discuss the plea bargain.
"Her next court appearance is on Friday. Beyond that, I have no comment," said Rick Hinshaw, spokesman for special prosecutor Joy Watson.
Grubman was hit with a 26-count indictment for backing her father's Mercedes-Benz sport-utility vehicle into a crowd of clubgoers after an argument with a bouncer at Southampton's Conscience Point Inn last summer.
She could have faced up to eight years in prison if convicted of all charges, but was angling for a deal with little or no jail time.
Her willingness to enter the DWI facility is a total reversal for Grubman, said a lawyer for one of the 11 crash victims suing Grubman for $181 million.
"It contradicts the position that she's taken all along - that she was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the incident," said Gary Gash of White Plains, who represents a young woman who broke her pelvis.
"It seems to constitute an admission," Gash said.
Manhattan lawyer Michael Schessinger called the deal "fair" and suggested the exact language of Grubman's plea will influence the outcome of the civil suits.
"If it's a done deal, we're relieved," said Schessinger, whose client, Harlan Goldberg, is suing Grubman for $5 million. "The DA's office and the criminal lawyers were working hard to come up with a just solution."
At one point, Grubman - the daughter of entertainment lawyer Alan Grubman - had agreed to a no-jail deal, but the judge put the kibosh on it.
Later discussions that centered on a 20-day sentence went nowhere.
First apology
Last month, Judge John Mullin prepared to set a trial date, prompting a wailing Grubman to apologize for the first time for the July 2001 mayhem.
"I'm so sorry," she blubbered in front of the television cameras - a poor-me performance that failed to impress the prosecutors or victims.
By last week, after the case had been taken over by Mullen, a Grubman adviser was publicly acknowledging that jail time was inevitable.
"She is going to have to face some very harsh realities," said Manhattan lawyer Ed Hayes.
Road raged many at a bar
When she got caught she went boo-hoo
And now we know she is a Jew
She cried for mercy and got none.
Should Larry refrain from posting anything concerning JG's public tribulations?
Perhaps it is off-limits to speak of someone cheating people out of millions of dollars for fear of reinforcing stereotypes?
The "incident" involved the so-called "houses" they live in. No booze involved. I hear Alaskan HS basketball teams fly to Hawaii for games. That true?
Lizzy screamed f*** you white trash before she put it in reverse and ran into them.
Like what? Like that maid service is not provided?
Will she provide public relations advice to underprivliged celeberties?
Like what? Like that maid service is not provided?
Like the cival suits.
The CIVIL suits are bad too!
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