Former PTA president testifies: 'I felt very humiliated' by O.C. couple
Feb. 3, 2016 Updated 8:47 p.m.
SANTA ANA ? A former Irvine attorney who tried to frame a school volunteer by planting drugs in her car returned to court Wednesday, as he and his ex-wife face a lawsuit accusing them of causing emotional distress.
Kelli Peters, a former PTA president, was the first to testify in her civil trial against Kent and Jill Easter, both of whom were convicted of a felony count for false imprisonment.
The question for jurors now is whether the Easters should pay Peters for her and her family?s emotional turmoil.
Peters? attorney, Rob Marcereau, described the Easters as people of ?privilege and entitlement,? notingthat both went to prestigious law schools and that Kent Easter worked at one of the county?s largest law firms.
?Kent Easter and his wife, Jill Easter, plotted and schemed to destroy the life of Kelli Peters for a full year, and in many ways they succeeded in doing that,? Marcereau told the jury. ?When they felt they were insulted by Kelli Peters, a lowly school volunteer, they were going to make her pay.?
Kent Easter, representing himself in the civil trial, contended that Peters is ?exaggerating and embellishing? the amount of harassment she suffered ? to gain a financial reward.
?The fact that something really bad was done to a person does not give them a winning Powerball number,? Kent Easter told the jury.
Peters had her first run-in with Jill Easter on Feb. 16, 2010, when Easter was upset that her son wasn?t in front of Plaza Vista School in Irvine when she came to pick him up. Peters testified that she told Jill Easter that her son may have been ?slow to line up,? a comment Easter apparently mistook as an insult against her son?s intelligence.
Exactly a year after the initial confrontation, officers were called to the school when Kent Easter called police, saying Peters had been driving erratically in the school parking lot.
Peters described the emotions she went through as the officer found bags of marijuana, Vicodin and Percocet in her car, planted by the Easters, prosecutors would say.
?I was crying and begging for him to not put the drugs on the car, because people would see it,? Peters said, recalling that her daughter was watching. ?Everybody was looking at me and I felt very humiliated.?
As word of the drug search spread, Peters said her daughter lost friends and was afraid to sleep on her own. The stress caused Peters to lose hair, she testified, and resulted in her husband suffering panic attacks.
Jill Easter, who is also representing herself against the civil case, did not show up for Wednesday?s opening statements or testimony. She recently changed her name to Ava Everheart, court records show.
Kent Easter?s law license has been suspended; Jill Easter was disbarred. Both completed their sentences. The trial is expected to continue for the rest of the week.
Peters? attorney has not yet outlined a specific monetary amount he is seeking for his client and her family.
Contact the writer: semery@ocregister.com
Feb. 3, 2016 Updated 8:47 p.m.
SANTA ANA ? A former Irvine attorney who tried to frame a school volunteer by planting drugs in her car returned to court Wednesday, as he and his ex-wife face a lawsuit accusing them of causing emotional distress.
Kelli Peters, a former PTA president, was the first to testify in her civil trial against Kent and Jill Easter, both of whom were convicted of a felony count for false imprisonment.
The question for jurors now is whether the Easters should pay Peters for her and her family?s emotional turmoil.
Peters? attorney, Rob Marcereau, described the Easters as people of ?privilege and entitlement,? notingthat both went to prestigious law schools and that Kent Easter worked at one of the county?s largest law firms.
?Kent Easter and his wife, Jill Easter, plotted and schemed to destroy the life of Kelli Peters for a full year, and in many ways they succeeded in doing that,? Marcereau told the jury. ?When they felt they were insulted by Kelli Peters, a lowly school volunteer, they were going to make her pay.?
Kent Easter, representing himself in the civil trial, contended that Peters is ?exaggerating and embellishing? the amount of harassment she suffered ? to gain a financial reward.
?The fact that something really bad was done to a person does not give them a winning Powerball number,? Kent Easter told the jury.
Peters had her first run-in with Jill Easter on Feb. 16, 2010, when Easter was upset that her son wasn?t in front of Plaza Vista School in Irvine when she came to pick him up. Peters testified that she told Jill Easter that her son may have been ?slow to line up,? a comment Easter apparently mistook as an insult against her son?s intelligence.
Exactly a year after the initial confrontation, officers were called to the school when Kent Easter called police, saying Peters had been driving erratically in the school parking lot.
Peters described the emotions she went through as the officer found bags of marijuana, Vicodin and Percocet in her car, planted by the Easters, prosecutors would say.
?I was crying and begging for him to not put the drugs on the car, because people would see it,? Peters said, recalling that her daughter was watching. ?Everybody was looking at me and I felt very humiliated.?
As word of the drug search spread, Peters said her daughter lost friends and was afraid to sleep on her own. The stress caused Peters to lose hair, she testified, and resulted in her husband suffering panic attacks.
Jill Easter, who is also representing herself against the civil case, did not show up for Wednesday?s opening statements or testimony. She recently changed her name to Ava Everheart, court records show.
Kent Easter?s law license has been suspended; Jill Easter was disbarred. Both completed their sentences. The trial is expected to continue for the rest of the week.
Peters? attorney has not yet outlined a specific monetary amount he is seeking for his client and her family.
Contact the writer: semery@ocregister.com
