| Judge Says Ex-Madonna Flame Doesn't Have to Turn Over Bank Account Info |
 Judge Says Ex-Madonna Flame Doesn't Have to Turn Over Bank Account Info
By BILL HETHERMAN LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A former boyfriend of Madonna won a round in court today in a lawsuit brought by two stalwarts of the West Hollywood gay business community, who allege he came up short on promises to loan them $600,000 and attract celebrities to their restaurant. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David L. Minning ruled that Chris Paciello does not have to turn over some of his personal financial information to Sandy Sachs and psychologist Robin Gans. Their lawyer, Valerie F. Horn, wanted the records to see if he had the ability to make the loan. Horn maintained in her court papers that Paciello had given up any privacy claims to the Citibank account by placing copies of four of the checks he wrote for the loan within other court documents in the case. The judge disagreed. "I don't think that attaching a check to a complaint warrants (the release) of all information from that bank account,'' Minning said. However, the judge also said he might grant access to the account later, if events warrant it. "I can envision that circumstances may change in these proceedings where the need for access to this particular bank account may overcome the need for privacy,'' Minning said. Kamelia Yadegari, one of Paciello's lawyers, said Minning's decision "was obviously a victory for us. The judge found it was inappropriate to allow them to delve into this private information.'' Horn declined comment on Minning's ruling. Sachs and Gans filed their lawsuit last Dec. 26, then amended it on May 4, after Minning found that three of the four causes of action needed clarification. According to the women's court papers, Paciello -- whose real name is Christian Ludwigsen -- told them last June that he was interested in investing $600,000 in the restaurant, Murano, in exchange for receiving 50 percent of the company's common stock. A snag occurred when Sachs and Gans learned that as a convicted felon, Paciello could not own stock in their enterprise because of California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control licensing rules, their suit states. Paciello spent seven years in prison after pleading guilty to murder and armed robbery in October 2000 for being the getaway driver in a home-invasion robbery in which Staten Island, N.Y. housewife Judith Shemtov was shot to death by a Paciello cohort in 1993. Finally, Paciello verbally agreed to lend Gans and Sachs the $600,000 if they agreed to remodel Murano and re-open by Labor Day with a chef picked by him, according to the plaintiffs. "(Paciello) promised to bring such entertainment clientele into the restaurant such as Madonna, Jennifer Lopez and and Leonardo DiCaprio'' and that (Murano) "would become the hot spot in Los Angeles,'' the suit states. Although Gans and Sachs completed the improvements, Paciello only loaned them $350,240, claiming he could not provide the rest because he was "broke,'' according to their court papers. Paciello, 37, filed his own lawsuit Jan. 15 in Los Angeles Superior Court against Sachs, Gans and their business venture, Murano Ristorante Partners Inc. The complaint has been consolidated with the Sachs-Gans suit. Paciello alleges 11 causes of action, including fraud and deceit, breach of a written contract and both intentional and negligent misrepresentation. Paciello's suit states that he provided the women with two-thirds of the $600,000 loan -- $400,000 -- and that they promised to make him the "front man'' at Murano with a management fee distribution of half of Murano's profits. Instead, Sachs "exerted control over every aspect of the restaurant, most of the time detrimentally interfering with management and operation,'' he alleges. Paciello has not been repaid the $400,000, according to his suit. "This case is straightforward,'' another Paciello lawyer, Keith A. Fink, said previously. "Mr. Paciello lent Murano several hundred thousand dollars which Murano refuses to pay back.'' Another hearing in the dueling litigation is scheduled for June 18. Sachs and Gans also own The Factory nightclub. Paciello is a former owner of the nightclubs Liquid and Bar Room in the South Beach area of Miami Beach, Fla. Paciello dated Madonna in the early 1990s. He also has been romantically linked to actresses Jennifer Lopez and Sofia Vergara, former MTV host Daisy Fuentes and models Niki Taylor and Naomi Campbell. |
