Potential jurors in estranged husband Tom Girardi's trial to be questioned about 'RHOBH' star Erika Jayne – Daily News

By Fred Schuster

Potential jurors in the federal criminal trial of disbarred attorney Tom Girardi will be asked if they are fans of true crime documentaries and whether they have watched the defendant's estranged wife, Erika Jayne, appear on “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” according to court documents filed Tuesday.

The questionnaire will be distributed to potential jurors on Thursday ahead of a preliminary hearing next week when Girardi is scheduled to go to trial. Girardi, a former plaintiffs' attorney who ran the now-defunct law firm Girardi Keith, is accused of participating in a scheme to steal some of the settlement money from former clients of the firm and then lie about it.

The 100 or more potential Girardi jurors summoned to the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles will be asked standard questions about their education, work history and past jury service, as well as their interests in news and celebrity gossip and which blogs, chat rooms and social media accounts they subscribe to.

The questionnaire also asks whether potential jurors have seen, heard or listened to any video or audio content or read any articles that mention Girardi, Erika Jayne or “The Real Housewives,” and whether they have an opinion about the veracity or accuracy of the allegations in the case.

The series also asked about exposure to Bravo Network, which airs “Real Housewives,” and whether respondents watch true crime podcasts or documentaries, and if so, which shows they watch.

The disgraced lawyer is accused of embezzling and pocketing approximately $18 million belonging to the firm's clients between 2010 and December 2020, when he and his law firm's former bookkeeper, Chris Cammon, embezzled and pocketed approximately $18 million belonging to the firm's clients.

Mr. Girardi and Mr. Cammon were originally indicted on five counts each of wire fraud, but on Tuesday U.S. District Judge Josephine L. Staton dismissed one of the charges against Mr. Girardi. Ms. Cammon, 50, is scheduled to go on trial in January.

Girardi, now 85, has Alzheimer's disease and had argued he was incompetent to cooperate in his defense, but was later found competent to stand trial and is free on $250,000 bail and living in the memory care unit of an Orange County nursing home.

Once known as a champion of the powerless in class action lawsuits against corporations, Girardi has represented plaintiffs in a number of high-profile cases, including the civil suit brought against Major League Baseball by Bryan Stowe, a San Francisco Giants fan who was seriously injured in an attack at a Dodgers game.

Girardi also represented plaintiffs in the toxic groundwater lawsuit against Pacific Gas & Electric that was dramatized in the 2001 Academy Award-winning film “Erin Brockovich,” starring Julia Roberts.

Jane filed for divorce from Girardi in 2020 after 21 years of marriage. After separating, the couple put their Pasadena home on the market for $13 million. Jane has not been charged in the lawsuit against her husband.