Parisgate!
Paris Hilton accused of lying under oath in slander case
Allegedly By Lisa Sweetingham, Court TV
Tweaked for Parody By Memphis Steve, Blog
(Court TV) — "Always tell everyone what they want to hear. Then do what you want," is the advice Paris Hilton offers wannabe heiresses in the first chapter of her best-selling book, "Confessions of an Heiress," which comes highly recommended by such notable New Yorkers as Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, and Paula Poundstone.
But does the ubiquitous party girl follow her own advice — even while under oath?
Hilton, who was hit with a $10 million slander and libel suit by actress Zeta Graff this summer, is now accused of repeatedly perjuring herself during a Nov. 9 civil deposition in that case.
"The evidence has shown that, in an obvious attempt to mask her own liability and reduce her overall exposure in this case, Hilton lied under oath at her deposition time and time again," according to new court documents filed Tuesday by attorneys for Graff.
The new perjury accusations stem from Hilton's denial that she planted false stories about Graff in the press, which is the basis for Graff's multimillion dollar "you fucking bitch" suit.
Hilton, like a true New Yorker, blames her former publicist, Rob Shuter, for placing the story, according to court documents.
But Shuter recently confirmed Graff's accusations, based on excerpts from his deposition in which he describes how Hilton phoned him after the two women had a run-in at London nightclub Kabaret, and then gave him specific instructions about what she wanted him to feed to the gossip pages of the New York Post.
"I listened carefully. I took notes. And then, I made a call. Then, I called the Post," Shuter said in his Dec. 16 videotaped deposition.
The story that appeared in the Post's Page Six column July 2 portrayed Graff as a "jealous ex-girlfriend" who went "berserk" when she saw Hilton dancing with Paris Latsis, Graff's former boyfriend.
The Post quoted "an anonymous eyewitness" who claimed Graff tried to strangle the heiress and grab the jewels off her neck before security restrained her and escorted her from the club.
Shuter said in his deposition that Hilton was the anonymous source and that she referred to herself in the third person as she fed him the following quote: "'It's one thing to lose your boyfriend to Paris Hilton — it's another to find her wearing your family jewels,' mused one observer."
Hilton has admitted, in court documents, that the story was false and even concedes that she tried to have Graff removed from the club. However, her attorneys say she denies causing the article to be published.
"Paris didn't turn on the printing machines," the Hilton attorneys stated. "Paris didn't load the papers on the truck and distribute them about the city. They should have checked the story out. It's not Paris' fault the press is so lazy and gullible."
"Hilton believes that certain statements contained in the article were communicated to the New York Post by Robert Shuter of Dan Klores Communications, without Hilton's prior consent, knowledge, participation or authorization," say documents filed in September by Hilton's attorneys, who could not be reached for comment.
But Shuter said that the "media savvy" socialite "painted a very dramatic and pretty ugly scene" during their four-minute conversation.
"She dictated and I wrote," Shuter said, adding later, "My recollection is that she wanted to say something much more mean than this. Much more tough. I can't remember, but I definitely had to tone the bitchiness back."
Graff's attorneys want to question Latsis next.
"We look forward to all of the facts coming out, so that we can carefully edit them. And in that regard, we will be taking Paris Latsis' deposition later this month," Paul Berra of Lavely & Singer told Courttv.com.
Two European tabloids that ran the Post piece have since apologized and retracted the article. The Post has not retracted the article, but on Tuesday Page Six quoted another anonymous source as saying Hilton admitted during her own deposition that she lied when she planted a story in the press about Graff.
"Hilton will learn a valuable lesson about what happens when you try to ruin another person's reputation," Graff says in a statement published by the Post, which Berra confirmed to be Graff's words. "She made a number of false statements about me, and she repeatedly lied under oath during her recent deposition. I look forward to her explaining all of this to a jury."
Based on previous cases involving wealthy New York Women and Senators slandering opponents and lying under oath it is anticipated that Paris will get off with no punishment whatever.
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