Judge Issues Ruling to McGreeveys: Divorce Final, No Alimony

Judge Karen Cassidy issued a ruling in the McGreevey divorce trial today. In it, she ordered both parties to abide by the sealed custody and visitation terms they agreed to in early May with regard to their daughter. She also ruled that Jim McGreevey has no alimony obligation to his wife Dina Matos McGreevey (he had argued he was too poor to afford it) and that both parties would pay their own health insurance costs. The former Governor was ordered to pay $250 a week in child support. Matos McGreevey had asked for $2,500 a month alimony for four years and $1,750 a month in child support.

McGreevey was also ordered to pay his wife just over $108,000, representing half of his financial assets. He was not ordered to pay her any of his earnings from his book The Confession.

In her opinion, Judge Cassidy noted that both parties had overriding motivations that clouded the claims in their trial: "The McGreeveys clearly had agendas. As previously addressed, their anger seemed to override any ability to testify credibly or to be reasonable. For example, Mr. McGreevey’s steadfast position that he was somehow unable to obtain employment contradicted directly with his position that he was actively attending seminary and pursuing a full-time program. Clearly, he cannot do both, but he somehow could not simply say that, instead contradicting himself over and over again. When faced with facts that he could not even support himself on his current salary, let alone both his daughters and possibly his wife, he was unable to provide a cogent explanation. Mrs. McGreevey’s demeanor in the courtroom and her position of an entitlement to an extremely generous standard of living reflected her anger and disappointment as to the end of her marriage. Her testimony was designed to generate a greater amount of support based upon circumstances that ended her marriage. The factors she suggested are not supported by the law and evidence."

Perhaps they'll both shut up now.

Ruling [pdf]
Opinion [pdf]

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Jim McGreevey Says He is Too Poor To Pay Alimony

Former NJ Governor Jim McGreevey took the stand yesterday in his divorce trial against wife Dina. McGreevey, who is scheduled to take the stand again today, told the courtroom that he'll only earn $48,000 this year and that his partner Mark O'Donnell, is supporting him. He says he can pay child support, but has no money for alimony, according to the Star-Ledger:

"On the stand, McGreevey said a sofa, a loveseat and an oriental rug bought during a going out of business sale at Huffman Koos are his only furnishings in the $1.3 million Plainfield home he shares with partner Mark O'Donnell. O'Donnell is paying all of McGreevey's living expenses, his legal bills, even an $11,000 debt to the Internal Revenue Service. He owes $204,720 to O'Donnell, a debt McGreevey swears he will repay. McGreevey said he drives a leased car, lives in a house that is paid for by O'Donnell and the only thing he can afford on his own is the $2,500 a month in temporary support the court ordered him to pay his estranged wife Dina Matos McGreevey. McGreevey said he is so strapped for cash, he has not paid a dime this year to his first wife Kari Schutz to support his teenage daughter Morag. He made $119,000 on the sale of his two-bedroom condominium in Woodbridge, but all that money is gone, spent on bills and trust funds for his two girls, Morag and Jacqueline. He got a $250,000 advance for his book, 'The Confession,' but that money was spent on legal fees, taxes, and to the ghost writer of the book. 'By virtue of this case, I have been financially crippled,' McGreevey testified yesterday."

An AP clip of his testimony in which he mentions his life in the closet and why he wanted to write his book, AFTER THE JUMP...

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Former New Jersey first couple James and Dina Matos McGreevey offered the public a surprise yesterday as they began to actually behave like adults, settling the child custody portion of their divorce and offering none of the fireworks that the media was waiting hungrily to hear about:

"The deal for custody of their 6-year-old daughter came on the third day of negotiations, which included some closed-door testimony before state Superior Court Judge Karen M. Cassidy, who was trying to avoid a divorce trial. The couple and their lawyers are scheduled to return to the Union County Courthouse on Monday to begin settlement talks on remaining issues, including alimony and child support. Should those succeed, the final issue would be Dina Matos McGreevey’s claim of marriage fraud. Mr. McGreevey left the courthouse Thursday evening escorted by two uniformed sheriff’s officers. Speaking of the custody agreement for his daughter, Mr. McGreevey said, 'She’ll get a large amount of time to spend with her parents.'"

McGreevey speaks about the settlement, AFTER THE JUMP...

McGreeveys Reach Deal on Custody of Daughter [ap via nyt]

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Israeli court denies restraining order against gay man's former partner because nation's family and domestic violence laws do not apply to gay partnerships: "The complainant told the court that the former lover, a younger man who had lived in his Ramat Gan home with him for two years, was abusing him psychologically. He argued that as common-law partner he was entitled to the protection of the family court."

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News: Barney Frank, Bullied, Missing Emails, Steve May, Birdwatcher

White House has new excuse for missing emails: we threw away the hard drives.

Mangina: Make Me a Supermodel's Perry demonstrates how to do "a proper tuck".

Ryan Phillippe gives Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon his blessing.

Arizona Republican Steve May rescinds Congressional bid after mom and pop refuse to release him from family business: “(My parents) always see my behavior as erratic because they’re dishonest. Sobriety showed me that they were engaged in … evil behavior that I want nothing to do with."

Judge anticipates more dirt in McGreevey divorce trial: "If Dina Matos McGreevey presses a claim that she was duped into marrying New Jersey's gay ex-governor, she'll likely endure a mountain of embarrassing evidence exposed at the trial. 'This week was just the tip of the iceberg,' Union County Superior Court Judge Karen Cassidy cautioned the warring former first couple at a hearing Thursday."

Kate Beckinsale tells Allure she'd rather eat vagina than sushi: "I have to say, sushi freaks me out more than almost anything. At least a vagina would be warm. [laughs] My publicist has literally turned a funny color and is going to go have a lie-down. He's throwing up now, as well. I find a lot of things kind of funny and I often say what's on my mind, and then get nine texts from all my friends going, 'What's the matter with you?' But I haven't ever made a big attempt to have any particular image. And I don't really worry about it."

Good news, Wentworth Miller fans. Prison Break has been picked up for a fourth season.

Mr. DeMille, your estate is ready for its close-up.

Barney Frank calls for decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana on Real Time with Bill Maher: "Frank offered no details on his legislation, and it's not at all clear that he could ever get it to the House floor for a vote. A Frank aide was unaware of his plans other than his statement on HBO. Frank has introduced legislation in previous years to allow the use of 'medical marijuana,' although the bills never made it out of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Asked by [Bill] Maher as to why he would push a pot decriminalization bill now, Frank said the American public has already decided that personal use of marijuana is not a problem. 'I now think it's time for the politicians to catch up to the public,' Frank said. 'The notion that you lock people up for smoking marijuana is pretty silly. I'm going to call it the 'Make Room for Serious Criminals' bill.'"

Hire your own paparazzo.

Bullying Billy: The NYT explores the case of one Fayetteville, Arkansas boy whose parents say has become a target for torment.

Mika steps up security after death threats: "Apparently the 24-year-old crooner has been forced to step up security after receiving some dodgy death threats from over-zealous fans. But the Grace Kelly star seems determined to put on a brave face, insisting: 'I'm absolutely fine - don't worry about me - I'm not scared.' In fact, far from shying away, he's promising to be much more flamboyant. 'I want to make my shows even more dramatic,' he told us."

Rediscovering God: Britney Spears negotiating to sing gig at Mel Gibson's Holy Family Catholic Church in Malibu.

Welsh TV birdwatcher Iolo Williams says his tight-fitting shorts have found him a new audience: "The dad-of-two, married to wife Ceri, told Wales on Sunday: 'A friend of mine, a girl who lives in Newport, told me about one of her mates who is gay, and said they have an informal gay club. One thing they did was tape my S4C programmes wearing my tight shorts and would get together in a bar to watch it. I was a little bit surprised at first but absolutely delighted. If they all watched my programmes it would probably double my audience!' Game-for-a-laugh Iolo said he’d would be more than happy to pop out for a pint with his newfound fanbase."

I Love My Boo: NYC safe sex campaign targets young Black and Latino gay and bisexual men. "One of the elements of this campaign that I love is that the language reflects it's target audience. It's current and even a little hood. ... Beautiful images of brothers loving and respecting each others bodies and souls. Now that's not something you see everyday."

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News: Passport Breaches, Bill Richardson, HIV, The Office

State Department acknowledges security breaches on Obama, Clinton, and McCain passport information: "[Secretary of State Condoleezza] Rice expressed concern over the privacy violations as well as the fact that they weren't reported right away. Rice said the incident "should have been made known to senior management. It was not to my knowledge and we also want to take every step we can to make sure this kind of thing doesn't happen again."

The Clintons and Rev. Jeremiah Wright: "The recent coverage of Rev. Jeremiah Wright has often cast him as a marginal, almost fringe figure, but Trinity Church is a major Chicago institution, and Wright has long been a prominent pastor on the American scene. And an anonymous blog set up to defend his church offers some compelling photographic evidence of this: A photograph of Wright and President Clinton, which it says was taken on Sept. 11, 1998 — the date of a White House gathering for religious leaders."

Jake Gyllenhaal had some kind of accident.

London protest: a protest will be held opposite Downing Street this Saturday, March 22 from 2-3 pm in support of gay Iranian teen Mehdi Kazemi and to demand Britain recognize the right of refugees to claim asylum on the grounds of sexual orientation.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson endorses Barack Obama: "I believe he is the kind of once-in-a-lifetime leader that can bring our nation together and restore America's moral leadership in the world. As a presidential candidate, I know full well Senator Obama's unique moral ability to inspire the American people to confront our urgent challenges at home and abroad in a spirit of bipartisanship and reconciliation."

Dept. of regrettable tattoos: Like father, like son.

Donald Hitchcock vs the DNC: Howard Dean's gay headache.

Jim McGreevey wins a round in divorce court: "Former Gov. Jim McGreevey didn't plan to torment his wife while they were married, a judge in their divorce case ruled Thursday, while allowing her to continue with a claim of marriage fraud. The judge dismissed Dina Matos McGreevey's claim of emotional distress against her estranged gay husband. 'Mr. McGreevey was not out to destroy her emotionally,' Superior Court Judge Karen Cassidy said."

Match drag queens with their baby pictures.

Former Bachelor Andy Baldwin gets juiced.

Stealth form of HIV may hold key to vaccine: "HIV is so dangerous because it is adept at avoiding detection by the immune system, says Carolyn Williamson at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Some patients, however, have genetic mutations in the machinery of their immune system that are able to track and respond to HIV infection. In these people, the virus sacrifices its ability to grow in order to resist the immune attack. 'HIV strives to survive,' says Williamson, 'It will even compromise its fitness to evade detection – and that might impair its ability to replicate.' Now, Williamson's research team has shown that in its compromised form, HIV is less able to take a grip if it is transmitted to a new host – even if that person doesn't have the beneficial mutations in their immune system."

Butte: Mainstream media ignores victimization of gays. "If the media paid more attention to King's murder and the homophobia behavior that permeates our public schools, perhaps there'd be a public outcry here in the Sunshine State against the Legislature's removal from the proposed Safe School bill language that addresses harassment of GLBT students."

The Office is back - here's the new promo!

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Battle of Attention Whores: Matos McGreevey Denies 3-Way Claim

In a statement to ABC News, Dina Matos McGreevey said that Teddy Pedersen's claims that she and former NJ Governor Jim McGreevey were involved in regular three-way sex trysts that they nicknamed "Friday Night Specials" are false, prompted by jealousy from her husband over the attention she has received since the Spitzer story broke.

Said Matos McGreevey to ABC:

"Theodore Pedersen's claims, as reported in the Newark Star Ledger on March 16, are completely false and were prompted by Jim McGreevey. This all has to do with the publicity I have received since Governor Spitzer resigned. Jim has enlisted one of his cronies in trying to distinguish that situation from his own, and to discredit me in the media. He cannot stand it when I am receiving attention in the media rather than him. This is not the first time. Jim started with a false claim, made shortly before my book was published, that I knew he was gay when we were married. The falsity of that claim is made clear on the very first page of Jim's book, just as his description of our relationship in his book stands in stark contrast to Pedersen's false allegations. Jim again became the focus of the media's attention, just one day after my book was released by announcing his intention to become an Episcopalian priest. Jim has had a close relationship with Pedersen since his days as Mayor of Woodbridge, and arranged jobs for Pedersen from that time through his years as Governor and beyond. They have continued their close relationship since Jim left office. Most recently, in August 2007, Jim and his partner, Mark O'Donnell, funded Pedersen's vacation to China, along with Jim, O'Donnell, and other members of Jim's inner circle. This was obviously payback time for Pedersen."

Jim McGreevey told the AP today that the Friday Night Specials did happen: "McGreevey said the encounters happened, but the couple needs to move forward for the sake of their 6-year-old daughter. 'This happened, this happened in the past, and now we need to move on with our lives,' McGreevey said."

AFTER THE JUMP, Dina Matos McGreevey talks to the AP about the Spitzer scandal.

Previously
McGreevey Aide Had Sexual Threesomes with Former NJ First Couple [tr]

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McGreevey Aide Had Sexual Threesomes with Former NJ First Couple

While it's hard to believe that the McGreeveys are still quarreling over their divorce proceedings, it's even harder to believe there are still bombshells of this magnitude left to drop.

Former aide Theodore Pedersen, who was a driver and traveling aide for the former governor, told the New Jersey Star-Ledger that he had regular sexual affairs with the couple, or, as he told the New York Post, "The 'intense' end-of-the-work-week escapades, he said, usually began with a 'couple of drinks' at a local T.G.I. Fridays and culminated in 'a hard-core consensual sex org' among the three of them at McGreevey's Woodbridge condo.

According to the Star-Ledger, "The aide, Theodore Pedersen, said he and the couple even had a nickname for the weekly romps, from 1999 to 2001... They called them 'Friday Night Specials,' according to Pedersen. He said he wanted to refute the innocent image that Matos McGreevey has projected - both during the couple's ongoing divorce battle and in interviews she gave after New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned last week in a sex scandal. He said he was also incensed by her portrayal of herself as an unsuspecting wife in her book: 'Silent Partner: A Memoir of My Marriage.'"

Said Pedersen: "I wanted to get this out now because it was so offensive to me that she goes on television playing the victim. She's trying to make this a payday for herself. She should have told the truth about the three of us."

Pedersen, who is 29 and lives with his girlfriend, said that the Friday night flings were the only contact he had with Dina, and he was never positive if the governor was gay or not:

"I had heard the rumors in circles outside of work (that McGreevey was gay)...In hindsight, there might have been light interest (in me), but it didn't seem like he was gay. It did enhance their sexual relationship having me be a part of it."

Pedersen told the New York Post: "He liked watching me, and she would watch me while she was [performing sex acts] with Jim...It's frustrating to hear her call Gov. Spitzer a hypocrite while she's out there being as dishonest as anyone could be about her own life. She's framed herself as a victim - yet she was a willing participant, she had complete control over what happened in her relationship. She was there, she knew what was happening, she made the moves. We all did. It's disgusting to watch her play the victim card."

Dina Matos McGreevey has claimed that she did not have any clue about her former husband's sexual preference until his announcement "I am a gay American" in August 2004. Mc Greevey filed papers in April 2007 saying that his wife knew he was gay a full four years before that announcement. The paper adds: "A trial before Union County Superior Court Judge Karen Cassidy is scheduled to start in May. Pedersen could be among the first witnesses to testify."

McGreevey aide says he had sexual trysts with ex-governor, wife [nj star ledger]
The McGreeveys' Secret [ny post]
(image source)