In The New Yorker Jeffrey Toobin takes a look at Martha Stewart’s probation. Did she violate by attending Time‘s party? Here’s the essential facts as discussed in the article:
On April 19th, Martha Stewart attended a cocktail party and gala dinner, at the Time Warner Center, that was billed as a “celebration” of Time‘s “100 Most Influential People” issue. The evening seems to have been convivial, although Jon Stewart (no relation), who performed at the party, did note, after Martha’s departure, that he had seen her “fashion a shiv out of a lamb shank.” Her attendance raised certain questions, however, because, influential or not, she remains under home confinement after her conviction, last year, for, among other things, making false statements to federal prosecutors. The terms of Stewart’s probation allow her to leave home for up to forty-eight hours a week for “employment,” medical and dental appointments, food shopping, and religious observance. The question that Stanton’s office is now investigating is whether the party constituted a genuine work obligation or mere socializing.