Mara McIlvain

Anand Jon Trial: A Postscript

Hina/WikipediaAnand Jon: The Long Goodbye?​In the end, nothing came as a surprise. Yesterday, well past the court's normal 4 p.m. closing time and following an all-day hearing, Judge David Wesley tersely rejected fashion designer Anand Jon Alexander's motion for a new trial. Wesley then sentenced ... More >>

Anand Jon Hearing Continues

Judge David Wesley recessed Anand Jon's new-trial hearing for lunch a little while ago. Jon used almost all of the morning session to passionately attack rogue juror Alvin Dymally, who had reached out to Jon's sister, Sanjana, in an apparent attempt to woo her or to offer his assistance in influenc ... More >>

Tense Moments in Today's Anand Jon Courtroom

For 100 intense minutes this morning the defense and prosecutors involved in the Anand Jon trial argued to persuade Judge David Wesley on the motion to set aside Jon's first trial and order a new one. The defense motion has kept the fashion designer, who was convicted of 16 sex-related charges last ... More >>

Anand Jon's Night Gallery

[Update: A scheduled hearing to determine whether Anand Jon's 2008 conviction should be set aside in favor of a new trial was postponed to May 29, in order to allow defense attorneys more time to contact witnesses. Also, several images from Jon's support Web site, including those shown here, have be ... More >>

Judge Denies Anand Jon Recusal Bid, Sets New Trial Hearing

This morning Judge David Wesley heard arguments from Anand Jon defense lawyer Leonard Levine as to why the entire District Attorney's office should be recused from prosecuting a new trial that the fashion designer's attorneys are seeking -- as well as from investigating why a juror in Jon's trial ha ... More >>

Anand Jon's Post-Verdict Twilight Zone

The court afterlife of the Anand Jon trial -- a post-verdict twilight filled with sentencing hearings and new trial motions -- has now stretched out longer than the trial itself. That proceeding ran a mere two months before the Beverly Hills fashion designer was convicted of one count of rape and 15 ... More >>

Star-crossed at Starbucks: Strange Twist at Anand Jon Sentencing

Anand Jon Sentencing Hearing Starts

Criminal Courts Building, Department 102, 9:16 a.m.Judge David Wesley has taken the bench. Everyone seems to be here except Anand Jon. Jon's sister, Sanjana, is wearing  a long, scarf-like wrap that is pale-green -- will her brother be wearing a green tie? During the trial his ties matched her ... More >>

Juror Furor: Anand Jon Case Takes Troubling Twist

Call it the extension of March Madness by other means. Those of us reporting on the post-trial hearings of the Anand Jon case have known for more than a month that today would be the date of a hearing regarding explosive charges that the District Attorney's office had thwarted a January 7 meeting be ... More >>

Full Court Press: Dominick Dunne's Cameo at Phil Spector Retrial; Anand Jon's Explosive Evidence of Juror Shenanigans

New Questions Raised About Anand Jon Trial

For more than a month now there's been courthouse buzz about a development brewing in the completed trial of fashion designer Anand Jon Alexander, who was convicted last November of 15 counts of sexual abuse and one count of rape. The word was that lawyers for Anand Jon, as he is known professionall ... More >>

Anand Jon Sentencing Postponed

Department 102 began filling with D.A. and media types before 9 a.m. today, in anticipation of Judge David Wesley handing down sentence to fashion designer Anand Jon Alexander. Anand Jon, as he is known professionally, was convicted in November of 16 counts of sexual assault against seven young and ... More >>

Seduction or Rape?

Day 2 of Anand Jon Trial's Closing Arguments Prosecutor Mara McIlvain delivered the D.A.’s closing argument Wednesday, followed by the first of three Anand Jon lawyers with the defense’s side, presented by Donald Marks. Marks had only begun his comments when court adjourned yesterday, and picke ... More >>

Anand Jon Trial: Searching Google for an Arrest

Anand Jon defense attorney Eric Chase vented his frustration in court this morning over lack of cooperation from Google. Since October 10, he claimed, he’d been asking the Santa Monica office of the search-engine giant to authenticate emails sent to Jon by Amanda C, who has accused his client of s ... More >>

Anand Jon’s Beverly Hills Cop Witness

Defense lawyers for L.A. fashion designer Anand Jon Alexander, who is accused by nine young women of committing sexual assaults against them, continued their case this morning by calling Beverly Hills cop Nicole Cranham to the stand. The attorneys sought to show that three of Jon’s accusers (Britn ... More >>

The Strange and Disturbing Trial of Anand Jon

What we talk about when we talk about rape

Barely Illegal: At Anand Jon rape trial, young models testify and defense argues over age of consent

Little women: Is 14 really the new 18?