She should have plead no contest from jump, and then this entire mess could have been reduced to a judgment (why not...she has nothing to attach to ...no home...no assets..so nothing to lose). It certainly was not worth having her parents, brother, friend and Hoover deposed and all that brought out. I do not think there is any lawyer in their right mind that would allow this case to go forward. Yet another opportunity to have her family under oath so there is even more of their testimony to compare and contrast to impeach them during the murder trial. Moreover, in a civil suit she has to answer questions. There is no way this going to trial. She must settle it...so why put off the inevitable?
I do not know what to think of Mr. Kassen, since he didn't even bother to appear at any of the depos. Isn't all that Mrs. Gonzalez was asking for was 15K? I trust it must be much more than that, because just the attorney fees to defend this case so far would have exceeded that long ago.
Many times insurance companies, for example, will pay out on a suit, even if they do not agree with the merits , simply because the "nuisance" would cost more to defend in a protracted legal battle. If I were representing her, I would have had Casey make the most humble apology to Mrs. Gonzalez for any confusion or embarrassment that was inadvertently caused to her or her children. I would have had it state that this particular lady, unequivocally is not known to Casey, and is NOT the lady that she is referring to. If that did not satisfy Mrs. Gonzalez, I would have advised Casey to plead no contest and nip this in the bud.
Any jury would be brutal on Casey, now that she is indeed a convicted felon for ripping off a friend, they would likely award Mrs. Gonzalez obscene amounts of money. No way in the world this goes to trial, IMO.
We often talk about how Casey's family and lawyers have bumbled public relations. This is a prime example. A simple, sincere, apology would have done wonders for Casey regarding this matter. The fact that Dom and Cindy tried to dig up dirt and see if Mrs. Gonzalez had ever worked as a maid and collected social security , and looked up dirt on her was evil, IMO. The fact that Cindy mocked her looks in a deposition was hateful. The fact that Brad went on TV and said the lady couldn't have been harmed because she had nothing to start with surely didn't serve to win over the public either. This has been a colossal embarrassment and poorly thought out strategy from jump. Mr. Kassen....for the love of God...end this now.