Fleiss, Heidi - Hollywood Madam Sentenced To 3 ...
Hollywood Madam Heidi Fleiss Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison
May 25, 1995 By Jessica Seigel,
LOS ANGELES — Superior Court Judge Judith Champagne seemed almost apologetic Wednesday as she sentenced Heidi Fleiss to 3 years in prison for running a ritzy call-girl ring that catered to rich and powerful men.
Fleiss, known as the Hollywood Madam, received the mandatory 3-year minimum sentence required under California law.
Although the judge implied that she might have been inclined to sentence Fleiss to less than the mandatory 3 years, in a gentle voice Champagne contradicted the idea that Fleiss' brand of party-girl prostitution is a victimless crime, as suggested by her lawyers.
"(Prostitution) is very degrading and I am sure it does take its toll," she said.
Ambivalence over the sentencing was echoed by the prosecution.
"The punishment being handed out here is not one I would choose, but the legislature did," Assistant District Atty. Alan Carter told the judge.
A deeply conflicted jury found Fleiss, 29, guilty of three pandering charges in December. She appealed, based on statements from some jurors that they had discussed the case outside the courthouse and traded votes on the charges during deliberations.
Champagne agreed there had been juror misconduct but ruled that it was not serious enough to mandate a new trial.
None of the men who used Fleiss' call-girl service have been publicly named or prosecuted, though many of them are known to police.
At one point after her arrest, rumors surfaced that Fleiss would sell her story and the names of famous clients recorded in her little black book for $1 million. But the money apparently was never offered and the names remain a secret.
Almost two years have passed since the high-school dropout was arrested for operating a call-girl ring on the fringes of Hollywood's fast crowd-charging customers $1,500 and up for one night with beautiful young women recruited from the nightclub scene.
Her family was dragged into her case when federal authorities prosecuted her father, Paul Fleiss, a respected pediatrician, on charges of helping her launder money from her call-girl operation.
In a plea bargain two weeks ago, the elder Fleiss admitted guilt to tax fraud and knowledge of his daughter's illegal activities. He is expected to get probation.
Dressed in a drab grey suit and turtleneck in court Wednesday, Heidi Fleiss was tense and nervous. With her schoolteacher mother, father and brother beside her, she relaxed somewhat after learning her sentence would be the minimum. With credit for good behavior, she could be released from prison in about 18 months.
Pending an appeal, which may take a year, Fleiss was allowed to go home Wednesday on $200,000 bail that her father guaranteed against his medical practice.
She faces a second trial in June on federal charges of tax evasion, money laundering and conspiracy to hide income from the Internal Revenue Service.
Though chastened, Fleiss was not contrite. "It's like my lawyer said," she announced loudly to her teenaged brother, Jesse, during a pause in proceedings. "All of America thinks this is ridiculous."
Some members of the public do and some don't, as shown in spontaneous debate outside the Los Angeles Criminal Courthouse where the O.J. Simpson trial is grinding along on the 9th floor.
"If they lock her up, it's a miscarriage of justice," insisted Aziz Muhammed, an O.J. memorabilia vendor.
But two men taking a break from jury duty in an unrelated case supported Fleiss' 3-year sentence.
"Prostitution is still a crime as far as I know," said Scott Butler, 30, a truck driver. "Even in Los Angeles, there's still a sense of morality."