That's the question they'll be asking. We might as well ask it first.
In wake of the mysterious death of her son in the Bahamas, the fight over her late octogenarian billionaire husband's fortune, the paternity battle over her baby girl, yesterday's lawsuit over the TrimSpa ads-- the fight over her late octogenarian billionaire husband's fortune... there are more than enough avenues to investigate.
A drug overdose in a hotel room? Anna Nicole Smith died like a true Hollywood legend (though in a nod to her humble roots, it was Hollywood, Florida), and that all-too-perfect ending is another reason the conspiracy theories are already developing. Who stands to benefit from her death? Anna Nicole recently married her attorney and reality TV show co-star Howard K. Stern. He's claimed paternity of her five-month-old daughter Dannielynn, who will now inherit any fortune that's decided.
7 comments:
I really miss Hard Copy! The Inside show is just StarSuck.
Nobody does real news anymore. Really. When Tim Russert is the lead in "Scooters" trial. Hell, even Hard Copy got affraid of being sued before they folded.
There is no one in the news business with real balls. Don't even try to talk to me about NBC's “To Catch a Predator” crap-They are just leaching off the "Safe Online folks"-No Balls=No viewers!Time will prove me correct.
A tabloid legend dies - God bless Anna Nicole... can't quite believe it.
we will never for grrt anna nicole smith i was her husband
i miss u anna
There have been so many different story lines to date, but once you lay them all out, I think it's pretty obvious that Howard Stern was behind all of this. And I also think it's possible Howard may have been involved in E. Pierce Marshall's death, although I admit that it may be a bit of a stretch. I'll walk you through what I think was going on in Howard's head.
Most people are aware of Anna Nicole's legal battles with J. Howard Marshall's estate. The California courts first awarded Anna Nicole over $470 million (which was later reduced to around $88 million), but the Texas courts awarded her zilch. The ninth circuit sided with Texas, but the Supreme Court unanimously reversed in May of 2006, meaning it is likely that Smith’s estate will be worth several millions.
In June, E. Pierce Marshall, the son who had been relentlessly battling Anna Nicole in the courts unexpectedly passed away from a “brief and extremely aggressive infection”. No other details were released. Now this may sound out there, but I wouldn't put it past Howard Stern to have been involved in this one. He could have gotten his hands on some selenium or other type of undetectable poison (like that radioactive stuff that the Russian spies used). However, even if Stern has no involvement, I see Marshall's death as a potential catalyst of all the drama; Stern sees the opportunity for a windfall because Marshall's estate is unlikely willing to battle as vigorously or ruthlessly in court as E. Pierce.
I also believe that the legal process has broken Stern by this point. After all, this fight has lasted over ten years (and E. Pierce shortly before his death had promised to fight this to the end), and Stern hasn’t seen a penny from the judgment. Anna Nicole probably can't pay Stern for all the work he's done, and Stern has been bearing all the risk himself. He probably feels that he has earned this money in more ways than she has. The details are not clear concerning the alleged relationship between Stern and Smith, such as when it began and whether it was truly romantic. I did read somewhere that she thought he was just a "gopher", although I'm not quite sure how to take that. However, sometime near the end of 2005, Anna becomes pregnant, and some close to her believe Larry Birkhead, a photographer employed by Smith, is the true father. This is where the story gets interesting.
According to Entertainment Tonight, Stern and Smith both claimed that Birkhead signed an “Agreement Not to Communicate with the Media”. Birkhead claims ignorance. ET, however, obtains what appears to be a handwritten addendum signed by Birkhead stating:
If I breach this agreement then I will pay a liquidated damages sum of ten million dollars, and any money received would revert back to Anna Nicole Smith as damages from any breach .
Birkhead is not deterred, though, and continues to assert that he is the father. Stern and Smith both move to the Bahamas in the latter part of 2006 for the birth of the child, reportedly to avoid paternity tests. Now ask yourself this: even if Birkhead is the true father why are Stern and Smith trying so hard to deny him custodial rights? Some say that Anna Nicole admitted before she passed that Birkhead was the true father.
I think it's clear that once Anna agrees to move with Stern to the Bahamas, his plan is in full effect. For whatever reasons (perhaps jealousy of Birkhead, perhaps just for the money), Howard has decided to kill Anna and her son so that he is in position to get all this money that he has been fighting for for years. If Birkhead is the father of the child, there are some real complications, so Howard does everything he can to persuade Anna to move with him to the Bahamas to avoid Birkhead (and the U.S. courts).
Here is the applicable law in the Bahamas for determining paternity status:
PART III
ESTABLISHMENT OF PATERNITY
7. (1) Unless the contrary is proven on a balance of probabilities, there is a presumption that a male person is, and shall be recognised in law to be, the father of a child in any one of the following circumstances-
(c)
the person marries the mother of the child after the birth of the child and acknowledges that he is the natural father;
(g)
the person has acknowledged in proceedings for registration of the child, in accordance with the law relating to the registration of births, that he is the father of the child;
(j)
a person who is alleged to be the father of the child has by his conduct implicitly and consistently acknowledged that he is the father of the child.
But there’s also this.
(2) Where circumstances exist that give rise to presumptions of paternity in respect of more than one father, no presumption shall be made as to paternity.
(Editor's note- Howard probably knew about this and this is why he made Birkhead sign that agreement, because he didn't expect Birkhead to go to the media and he knew that if Birkhead did, it could be fatal to his claim).
And there's also this.More on all of this later.
9. (1) Any person who -
(a)
being a woman, alleges that any named person is the father of her child;
(b)
alleges that the relationship of father and child exists between himself and any other person; or
(c)
being a person having a proper interest in the result, wishes to have it determined whether the relationship of father and child exists between two named persons, may apply in such other manner as may be prescribed by rules of court to the court for a declaration of paternity, and if it is proved to the satisfaction of the court that the relationship exists the court may make a declaration of paternity whether or not the father or the child or both of them are living or dead.
For the Bahamian law to apply, Howard and Anna Nicole must be also be domiciled (have residency with the intent to stay) in the Bahamas. For residency, the law in the Bahamas states that a person owning a house there valued at more than $500,000 and having the means to reside without being employed – and being of good character – can be eligible. However, my guess is that the well had run fairly dry by this point, and neither Stern nor Smith had this kind of money. So Smith tells G. Ben Thompson, a California realtor, that he is the true father of the child, although he knows this is untrue because he is sterile. He conveys a $950,000 house to Smith under an oral agreement that she will take out a mortgage to repay him. Later, he will try to evict her after realizing she never intended to pay him..
In the meantime, Smith and Stern are able to obtain residency in just three weeks, much faster than the normal wait of three months. Amidst scandal, Immigration Minister Shane Gibson resigns after photos appear with him embracing Smith in bed. One can only speculate as to what methods of persuasion were used, and why there was such a hurry to obtain residency...
So now, Howard knows that for domiciliary purposes he must also prove that Anna intended to stay in the Bahamas rather than back in the states. How does he do this? He claims that when her son was buried, she jumped into the coffin declaring she wanted to be buried with him.
Does it not seem a little odd how this also works out in his favor? I mean really, does he seem like the type of guy that cares where she would be buried?Just recently, the court granted this wish, and Anna Nicole's funeral took place in the Bahamas.
Moving on, Dannielynn Hope Marshall Stern is born September 7, 2006. Howard K. Stern is listed on the birth certificate as the father. Howard Stern then appears on Larry King live and claims (publicly acknowledges, a requisite of the statutes) that he is the father, even though he contradicts himself by making an awkward comment about the timing of the pregnancy.
A few short days after the birth of her baby girl, Anna's son Daniel (who was then listed as the sole inheritor of her estate in the will) dies from drug overdose. Friends of Anna Nicole report seeing Stern act suspiciously, and claim he flushed two white pills down the toilet. Her son died from a methadone overdose, a drug used to fight heroin addiction. Nobody knows for sure where he got these pills.
The only witness that will be able to testify about his death now that Anna Nicole has passed away, is Stern. Furthermore, Stern is reported to be the executor of the will (dated 2001), meaning he had full knowledge Daniel was the last in line. This may also explain why Anna Nicole'’s pregnancy may have rattled Stern, as Danielynn would interfere with his inheritance, and that's why he has tried so hard to assert paternity.
The Bahamas never officially released the results of Daniel's toxicology test. Instead, Anna Nicole(probably through Stern) hires “world-renown” toxicologist, Dr. Cyril Wecht to perform the test. Foul play and drug overdose are ruled out at first, although later toxicology tests show Daniel had at least seven different drugs in his system at the same time.. However, I would also like to point out some things I find odd about the involvement of Wecht:
!.)Why would Smith bring in someone that is so “good” if she knew she couldn’t afford him? (she reportedly still hasn’t paid) Wecht will not report the exact terms of the deal (though reports are she owes about $80,000.) He calls the situation a “very interesting experience”.
2.) From Stern’s perspective, it seems that people will be less likely to question the finality of a report by a toxicologist that is “world-renowned”. So in some form or another, I think an under-the-table arrangement was made for Wecht to keep quiet. And Stern knows that Wecht would never admit that publicly, because it would undoubtedly destroy his career and credibility.
Meanwhile back on the ranch, G. Ben Thompson -the true owner of the mansion that Anna and Howard have claimed as their own- tries to evict Anna because she never paid him a cent. However, Anna Nicole relies on a written Statute of Frauds defense and claims the house was a gift as well, and she tells Thompson he can take her to court. Stern knows that they can’t lose this battle, because that would mean losing residency and domiciliary status. So Anna Nicole (who has hired another legal team in the Bahamas, probably to give poor Howard a rest ), turns the tables and sues Thompson so they can stall for a bit. In late January, Smith’s claim was thrown out by the Bahamian Supreme Court as a joke, and G. Ben Thompson was granted permission to continue with the eviction process.
Furthermore, Anna Nicole never paid her lawyers. One article which I read(but I accidentally lost the link, maybe y'all can help me find it again) said that her lawyers had "creative differences" with Stern about what tactics to use, and they made him sound like a complete scum bag.
However, I think herein lies the proof that Howard Stern kills Anna-- the eviction proceeding was to take place in February, only a few short days after Anna Nicole's mysterious death. At this point, Howard and Anna are probably in some serious money trouble, and everyone is starting to talk about their shady dealings. Plus, Anna and Howard are now homeless, and so they' would be forced to move back to the U.S., where the courts can have jurisdiction to mandate a paternity test. When you consider all of the mounting pressures, it seems clear that Howard had to act and act quickly.
Anna had reportedly been suffering from a 105 degree fever which required her to travel with a nurse. Moreover, Howard Stern was not with her when she passes, so you're probably wondering how I can pin this on him... Well let me put it this way: when was the last time you knew someone that died of the flu? To be honest, I don't think there's an actual concensus on how she died, though I've heard she may have choked on her own vomit. But how difficult would it hav e been for Howard to slip her nurse some of those special pills to give Anna in case she got sick?
Sorry to jump around in time, but there's one more important piece I skipped over-
A mere 18 days after Daniel’s death, Stern and Anna Nicole were “married” on a private ceremony on a boat. It wasn't a legal marriage, and there was no certificate, but it does suffice to earn Stern additional weight in establishing presumption of his fatherhood (take a look back at those Bahamian statutes above). This section of Bahamian law (not mentioned above) is also rather important:
8. For the purposes of section 7, where a man and a woman, in good faith, go through a form of marriage that is void, they shall be deemed to be married for the period during which they cohabit, and the presumption referred to in paragraph (b) of section 7(1) applies accordingly.
7. (1) Unless the contrary is proven on a balance of probabilities, there is a presumption that a male person is, and shall be recognised in law to be, the father of a child in any one of the following circumstances-
b.
the person was married to the mother of the child and that marriage was terminated by death or judgment of nullity within 280 days before the birth of the child, or by divorce where the decree nisi was granted within 280 days before the birth of the child;
So thus, Howard Stern has established yet another presumption of his fatherhood. It seems that should the laws of the Bahamas apply when Anna Nicole’s estate is divided, he has set himself up quite nicely. Although U.S. courts may try to intervene, there's a good chance that choice of law rules would leave this up to the Bahamas anyway, and (as we've seen) they use preponderance of the evidence rather than good ole fashioned DNA tests.
But what if they do decide to use California law? Stern's got this one covered too, as he has set himself up as Anna Nicole's "putative spouse". A "putative spouse" is one who isn't legally married to a person, but believes that he or she is. Section 404.345 of California code provides that the validity of the marriage relationship is determined by looking to the law of the state where the deceased had a permanent home at the time of death. The marriage will be considered valid "if under State law you would be able to inherit a wife's, husband's, widow's, or widower's share of the insured's personal property if he or she were to die without leaving a will." Id.; see also 42 U.S.C. § 416(h)(1)(A)(ii). In California, a "putative spouse" will be ensured some rights to the estate. In re Estate of Vargas, 36 Cal. App. 3d 714 (1974).
So now the courts are left in a tangled web of legal mess. Public opinion is divided sharply as well, some calling Howard evil while the others praise him. Some point out the negative comments Anna made about her mother shortly before she passed. But I wouldn't be surprised in the least if Howard had convinced her that everyone was out to get her but him, and the drugs may have further compounded this paranoia. And somehow in the process, Howard Stern pulled the wool over the collective eyes of the American public. But if he does end up with custody of a child that is not even his own, you have to wonder about the safety of the girl.
I know who killed Anna Nicole Smith. Its all on my blog.
http://blog.myspace.com/1255707
I think that E. Pierce Marshall wife may have had someone kill anna and her son so there would not be another trial for the money..this way she will get it all and so will her children.. I heard her say that anna will never see a dime of that money
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