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Updated Dec. 13, 2004, 10:33 a.m. ET

Lawyers agree on Pelosi's bad character, but not much else
Jurors will begin deliberating Daniel Pelosi's murder case Saturday morning.

RIVERHEAD, N.Y. — Stipulated: Daniel Pelosi is a bum.

After two months of testimony at a murder trial rife with greed, sex, spying, betrayal and violence, that's all a Long Island prosecutor and the defendant's lawyer could agree on during lengthy closing arguments Friday.

Beyond that, Assistant Suffolk County District Attorney Janet Albertson and defense attorney Gerald Shargel offered vastly different views of the amount, nature and quality of the evidence Albertson offered to prove that Pelosi killed millionaire financier Robert "Ted" Ammon three years ago.

Albertson stressed Pelosi's compulsive and manipulative nature, reminding jurors that he is an alcoholic, prone to fisticuffs, and a lousy gambler. Basing her cross-examination largely on a process of elimination, Albertson argued that Pelosi was the only player in a cast of characters who said he wanted to kill Ted Ammon and court his widow to get at Ammon's millions.


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Ammon was murdered Oct. 21, 2001, a full year after one prosecution witness claims Pelosi told him he was going out to Ammon's East Hampton beach house to "bash his brains" in and marry Ammon's estranged and deeply embittered wife, Generosa.

"This is not a whodunit ... It's that man," Albertson said, pointing at the defendant. "That man was the only man who entered Ted Ammon's life, speaking already about getting Ted Ammon's money, speaking already about bashing Ted Ammon's brains."

Pelosi, a 42-year-old unlicensed electrician, married Generosa Ammon just three months after the murder. The day after the wedding, she wired $1.2 million into an account he controlled. She estimated in a court document later that she had given Pelosi more than $2.6 million during the first two years of their relationship.

Albertson claimed that Pelosi believed Ted Ammon was worth $300 million and that he could get a good chunk of it through the widow, if he got away with the murder.

In his powerful and pointed three-hour closing argument, Shargel focused on the lack of hard evidence against Pelosi and motives four principal prosecution witnesses may have had to lie about incriminating statements Pelosi allegedly made.

Shargel also reminded jurors of Generosa Ammon's deep hatred for her estranged husband, whom she believed was hiding millions from her. She also believed he was shortchanging her with a $25 million divorce settlement and $50,000 per month alimony. Generosa, who died of cancer in August 2003, was never charged in the murder.

"Where was Generosa Ammon that night? Where was Generosa Ammon that night?" Shargel asked. "You haven't heard a single witness. You haven't heard anything about where Generosa was that night ... It was Generosa Ammon who complained, 'I can't live on $5 million.' It was Generosa Ammon, not Danny Pelosi, full of hate and anger."

Albertson contended that Generosa's death made it possible for the defendant and his attorneys to say anything they wanted about her. Noting that a defense theory that an "unknown gay man" killed Ammon fell apart mid-trial with testimony that an untested pubic hair was actually Ted Ammon's, Albertson argued that the defense switched theories mid-stream to focus on Generosa.

That the victim was more than 6 feet tall and Generosa Ammon was petite and drunk on the day of the killing indicates she probably wasn't the killer, Albertson said. She noted that most of Ammon's ribs were broken, he was struck over the head at least 35 times and he broke bones in both hands defending himself.

"That's not a woman. That's not a 5-foot, 2-inch, 120-pound Generosa Ammon," Albertson said.

Shargel noted there is no physical or eyewitness evidence that Pelosi was in East Hampton, let alone Ammon's million-dollar beach house, that night.

"What the prosecution has presented here is built on quicksand, speculation and guesswork," Shargel said.

Albertson charged that Pelosi was lying when he testified that he left his sister's home with a friend shortly after 2 a.m. to search for a place that was open to buy beer. She believes that he and the friend, who is awaiting trial as accessory to murder, drove out to Ammon's home, pulled the plug on a security camera system, attacked Ammon in his bed and then got rid of the security system hard drive, bloody clothing and bed covering.

The defense contends that the time of death was hours earlier, based on a pathologist's analysis of the contents of Ammon's stomach.

If the time of death was earlier, Pelosi's cellphone records place him in western Suffolk County, well away from East Hampton. But even if the prosecution was right that the time was later, Pelosi could not have gotten to East Hampton before 3 a.m. His niece, Kelly Lukert, testified that she awoke between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. to find Pelosi in her room looking for blankets.

Albertson claims Kelly, who was 11 years old at the time, has been "influenced" by family members who support Pelosi.

Both sides spent considerable time during their summations discussing the reliability of witnesses who claim Pelosi confessed.

A girlfriend who says Pelosi asked her for an alibi and confided that Ammon begged for his life and "cried like a bitch" is a jilted lover, Shargel claimed. Albertson countered that the woman, Tracy Riebenfeld, cooperated only reluctantly after many months of investigation.

The witness who said Pelosi claimed he was going to kill Ammon and marry the widow a full year before the murder hates the defendant because Pelosi had an affair with the man's wife, Shargel said. Albertson countered that the man, James Nicolino, had nothing to gain by testifying and merely had his private life aired in public by doing so.

And then there was the nanny who testified that Pelosi described killing Ammon and threatened to kill her too if she kept interfering in his affairs. The defense noted that, after that alleged incident, Kay Mayne wrote a warm letter to Pelosi in prison and signed it, "Love, Kay."

Pelosi's own father testified that the defendant asked him the day after the killing how he would get rid of something that he did not want anyone to find. Shargel charged that Robert Pelosi blamed his son for the death of his other son, James, a New York City police officer who died of an aneurysm that some family members felt was brought on by stress.

"All four people have one thing in common," Shargel said. "They come with an agenda, an ax to grind, a grudge to bear, or an advantage to gain."

The prosecutor admitted she doesn't have all the answers, but noted that the law only requires that she prove — even solely by circumstantial evidence, if necessary — that Daniel Pelosi was Ted Ammon's killer.

"Do I know the exact time of death? Nope. Do any of the doctors know the exact time of death? Nope," she said. "Do I know the exact weapon? Nope. Do I have to prove that beyond a reasonable doubt? Nope."

Shargel reminded jurors that they have to reach a verdict based on evidence, not emotion, probabilities or how they feel about the defendant.

"Fact is, Danny Pelosi is a lot of things. He's had a lot of bumps in the road in his life, but he's not a killer," Shargel said. "This is not a referendum on whether you like Daniel Pelosi. You can't convict a person of the crime of murder because you don't like him."

The jury is sequestered and is scheduled to begin deliberating Saturday morning.

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Verdict: Guilty

Pelosi jury deliberates through weekend

Closings: Lawyers agree Pelosi's a bum

Pelosi denies murder during intense cross

Defendant testifies

Witness: I had sex with millionaire

Informant: Pelosi confessed to murder

Is there enough evidence?

Openings: Money, betrayal and surveillance

Pelosi accused of threats, tampering

Trial opens for electrician accused of murdering Hamptons millionaire




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