Four current and retired NHL participants have violated a tribunal order obliging them to look for depositions in the explosive case they filed along with 15 other participants last twelvemonth claiming golf class developer Ken Jowdy squandered $ 25 million of their money on porn stars, party misss and wild parties for Roger Clemens, Reggie Jackson and other baseball stars.
The hockey participants are expected to drop the case to avoid facing countenances, which could include holding the suit dismissed at a hearing scheduled for March 3 in Los Angeles. The participants received notices for depositions on Christmas Eve but failed to react, harmonizing to Robyn Crowther, an lawyer for Jowdy. On Jan.25, Judge William F. Fahey ordered them to look for depositions, and the participants ‘ lawyer, Ron Richards, provided day of the months when they would be available, get downing on Feb. 16. So far, four complainants – Chris Simon and Bryan Berard, who both played for the Islanders and Rangers, former Ranger Greg de Vries and Jason Woolley – have failed to look.
The suit alleged that Jowdy blew money the participants invested in two golf developments on Mexico ‘s Baja peninsula on “ porn stars, bodyguards, party misss and other adult females, ” every bit good as private jets, five-star hotels and golf excursions to affect Clemens, Jackson, banned hit king Pete Rose and ESPN broadcaster Joe Morgan.
The participants besides said that Mexican governments had issued a warrant for Jowdy ‘s apprehension, and that his development in Cabo San Lucas had been hit by liens in surplus of $ 2.5 million by dissatisfied former employees.
“ They said there was a warrant for my apprehension, ” Jowdy said after the case was filed. “ Not true. There were n’t any porn stars, Hookers, strippers or anything like that. There were merely malicious prevarications put in a case. ”
There have been no liens on the belongings, harmonizing to Jowdy ‘s Mexican attorney, Fernando Garcia.
Jowdy said he ne’er met or talked to three-fourthss of the 19 participants named as complainants in the case. Alternatively, he dealt chiefly with an unaccredited fiscal advisor named Phil Kenner, who now calls himself a “ lifestyle manager. ” Kenner was Jowdy ‘s spouse in the Mexican golf classs, charged with raising funding.
The case, a consolidation of two suits filed last summer in Los Angeles Superior Court, generated monolithic headlines for the participants ‘ side. But the instance did n’t travel good in tribunal for the participants: Richards was smacked with admonitions for months by Judge Fahey. At a Dec. 2 hearing, for illustration, Fahey chewed out Richards for non holding all the participants ‘ fiscal records required to prosecute the instance.
“ Why did n’t you acquire all that before you filed this case? ” Fahey asked. “ When I was in pattern, before I took on representation and filed a case, I had all the paperwork. ”
When contacted by the Daily News, Richards claimed he was holding an allergy onslaught and could n’t speak. He did non return subsequent calls and electronic mails.
The participants ‘ allegations got the attending of federal prosecuting officers in New York, who launched an probe last summer. Now, with the hockey participants ‘ case in shambles, it is possible the focal point of the federal investigation will switch to Kenner and his associate, a former race auto driver named Tommy Constantine, known as Tommy Hormovitis before he lawfully changed his name after pleading guilty in 1993 in Illinois to one count of bringing of a controlled substance – cocaine.
Kenner and Constantine have been involved in several legal conflicts affecting hockey participants. Former NHL star Joe Juneau accused Kenner in a case filed in December of 2008 in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles of bilking him out of 1000000s of dollars in investings. An arbiter awarded Minnesota Wild right flying Owen Nolan $ 2.5 million after Nolan claimed he was scammed by Kenner.
Ethan Moreau of the Edmonton Oilers filed a suit at the same clip against Constantine. Both suits are ongoing.
Meanwhile, Richards told a newsman last summer that Jowdy failed to develop the undertakings. “ The lone thing they have to demo for it is sand on a beach in the center of nowhere, ” Richards said.
But one class, Diamante Cabo San Lucas, opened in October to rave reappraisals.
“ All he has wanted from Day 1 is for the participants to state the truth, ” a beginning near to Jowdy said. “ They forced him to acquire a tribunal order after the first clip they failed to demo up. Now the participants non merely withstand a justice ‘s tribunal order, but they purportedly withdraw their instance. I think that Tells you all you need to cognize about the truth of their allegations. ”
