Brooke Astor's Son Guilty on 16 Counts, Faces 25 Years

Offspring swindled socialite, jury finds after lengthy trial
By Marie Morris,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 8, 2009 2:04 PM CDT
Brooke Astor's Son Guilty on 16 Counts, Faces 25 Years
Anthony Marshall is shown after closing statements in the courtroom at State Supreme Court , Monday, Sept. 21, 2009, in New York.   (AP Photo/Steven Hirsch, Pool)

After a sensational 19-week trial, Brooke Astor's son was found guilty today on 16 of the 18 counts against him, including grand larceny and conspiracy. The 85-year-old will be sentenced on Dec. 8 and faces up to 25 years. The jury deliberated for 12 days before finding that the legendary socialite and philanthropist's only child had defrauded her of a hefty chunk of her $185 million fortune. Astor, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease, died in 2007 at 105.

Marshall betrayed no emotion as he heard the verdict, but his wife, Charlene, trembled visibly. Prosecutors had painted Charlene Marshall as a fortune-hunting social climber who prodded her husband into defrauding his mother of some $60 million. As they boarded an elevator in the courthouse after the verdict was announced, Charlene Marshall shouted, "I love my husband."
(More Brooke Astor stories.)

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