But They Were Gifts!
Lawyers for Anthony Marshall, the only child of late socialite-of-the-century Brooke Astor, have asked a judge to toss out charges that he stole millions in cash and valuables from his ailing mother, who died last summer at the tender age of 105. The prosecution ignored Astor's "clear pattern of well-informed generosity toward her only child," his lawyers said. Chances the judge dismisses the case? Not so good. [NYT]