Lawyers for everyone’s favorite practical jokester, Raj Rajaratnam, and his beauty queen gal-pal, Danielle Chiesi, have requested separate trials for their clients, on the grounds that “allegations of seven distinct conspiracies to commit securities fraud failed to show they could be connected at trial.” The argument they made in request for severance of the other trial, this one brought by the SEC, was that jurors would be “confused as to which evidence pertained to which conspiracy count and, in turn, which defendant.” It should be noted that none of this changes how Chiesi feels about Raja (in February she said that she considers him a good friend and that it is “an honor and a privilege” to stand next to him in court) or her predictions re: potential time in the big house (“There is not even a chance we will do one day in jail,” Chiesi said). In other news, this is apparently how DC’s looking these days.
beauty queen
When we last checked in with beauty queen and Raj Rajaratnam gal-pal Danielle Chiesi, she didn’t have much to say re: whether or not she and her boy were guilty of insider trading, as has been alleged, preferring instead to let her new makeover do the talking. Today she opened up to Reuters’ Matt Goldstein to let the world know a couplea things, namely that there’s no way in hell she and Raj-Raj will do time, that the Galleon manager didn’t hurt anybody (except for the employee whose body was temporarily disabled by an electric shock) and that he’s the most generous man she’s ever known (this we know is true, as said tasee was paid 5 g’s for her time).
“There is not even a chance we will do one day in jail,” Chiesi said in a recent telephone interview. “We didn’t do anything wrong.”
She said she considers Rajaratnam a good friend and it is “an honor and a privilege” to stand next to him in court. She and Rajaratnam are due back in court on Feb. 11.
As previously mentioned, one of the unforeseen consequences of the Galleon insider trading bust was credibility taking a hit. Specifically that of the individuals who’d told their friends and colleagues that Danielle Chiesi was a dime piece, and who were slightly dismayed to see the picture of her from a Bridget Nielsen (Flavor Flav Years) look-a-like contest. Luckily, they were saved when Bloomberg reported Danielle Chiesi was in fact named Miss Southern Tier Teenager in 1981, with the photo of DC in a tiara following shortly thereafter to prove it. Today another pic has emerged, from the sorority files.
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