Anthony Marshall and the attorney he conspired with, Francis Morrissey, each received jail sentences earlier this week for 1 to 3 years.  They had been convicted of looting Brooke Astor, Marshall’s mother, out of $60 million by convincing her to change her will when she was mentally unable to comprehend it due to Alzheimer’s disease, along with related crimes. 

Marshall’s attorneys had pled for leniency, citing his advanced age, poor health and doctors’ reports saying any jail time would equate to a death sentence for him.  The Probate Lawyer Blog covered the defense lawyer’s efforts in this recent article.

The judge wouldn’t hear of it.  He noted how sad it was that a life of extreme abundance led to such sadness, particularly when Marshall’s own son took the stand and “tried very, very hard to destroy” Marshall.

The judge did consider that Mrs. Astor loved her son, the judge felt, along with other mitigating factors, so he did not impose the 4 1/2 years that the prosecutors requested.  In

The Brooke Astor trial was a fascinating portrayal of greed and exploitation involving New York’s upper, upper crust society.  You can read The Probate Lawyer Blog’s coverage of the Brooke Astor case here.  Brooke Astor’s son, Anthony Marshall, and one of her attorneys, Francis X. Morrissey, Jr., were convicted of fraud, larceny, conspiracy and a host of related charges related to management of her financial affairs and changes to her will that occurred after she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

Brooke Astor trial

Because of this, Anthony Marshall, who is 85 years old, faces up to 25 years in jail.  But whether he actually sees any jail time is a big question.  He will certainly appeal the verdict and his lawyers will pull out every trick in the book to try to keep the millionaire from seeing the inside of a jail cell.

In fact, they’ve already started.  A few days ago, the Associated Press reported that Marshall’s attorneys filed a request asking the judge to dismiss the charges