Judge Elizabeth Allen White says Nicollette Sheridan's claims did not meet the standard of proof for battery, thus creator Marc Cherry is no longer a defendant in the case.
- March 14, 2012
AceShowbiz -
Judge Elizabeth Allen White has delivered a verdict in one point of Nicollette Sheridan's lawsuit against Marc Cherry and ABC. During the "Desperate Housewives" trial on Tuesday, March 13, the judge dismissed the battery charge, which means the show's creator is no longer a defendant in this case.
In delivering the verdict, the judge said that Sheridan's claims did not meet the standards of workman's compensation statutes that apply to these matters. Responding to the ruling, Cherry said to media outside the courtroom, "Obviously I'm thrilled by the judge's decision. But I'm going to withhold further comment until this matter is resolved completely."
Meanwhile, construction coordinator Michael Reinhart has testified for Sheridan in the wrongful termination lawsuit against ABC and ABC Studios. The employee on the drama series told the jurors he received an email believed to be suggesting a plan to wipe hard drives clean of correspondence relating to Sheridan's firing.
Saying that he could not recall the specific language of the email, its sender or the other recipients, Mike admitted that he may have misunderstood the email. The worker additionally said he regretted describing the email as a "definite conspiracy."
Closing arguments were initially expected to begin Tuesday afternoon, but are now scheduled on Wednesday.
