Girardi Prison Release Awaiting Appeal Boils Down to Two Rulings

Tom Girardi’s bid to be released from prison as he awaits an appeals court’s ruling will hinge on whether a federal judge agrees there are debatable issues that give the former lawyer a chance at having his conviction for stealing millions of dollars from his clients overturned.

It’s agreed that Girardi, an 86-year-old with dementia, doesn’t pose a flight risk or danger to the public. Whether Judge Josephine L. Staton decides to release him as the appeal of his August 2024 fraud conviction works through the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit depends on Staton’s position on her ...