Court Rules in Favor of Former Studio Owner

A federal appeals court ruled that former MGM studio owner Giancarlo Parretti’s constitutional rights were violated when he was held without bail for 35 days after being arrested in Los Angeles in November 1995 on a French warrant. The 2-1 ruling by U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said that the arrest violated Parretti’s 4th Amendment right against unreasonable search and seizure and that his detention without bail before an extradition hearing violated his 5th Amendment right to due process. Authorities had arrested Parretti on a French criminal warrant that accused him of fraud in connection with his $1.3-billion purchase of MGM in 1990. Although it marks one of the few court victories enjoyed by Parretti, the decision is unlikely to have much impact on the fugitive financier’s current legal entanglements. In January, he jumped bail and fled the country just before he was to be sentenced in Delaware on a conviction for perjury and evidence tampering.