By Shayna Jacobs
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT — The late Brooke Astor's elderly son, who was convicted at trial of swindling his mother out of her estate, is fighting the conviction in appellate court.
Attorneys for 86-year-old Anthony Marshall are arguing to have the conviction dismissed by an appellate court in a 99-page brief submitted Monday. The appeal reiterates several of the arguments the defense made during the 2009 trial, including that Marshall had legal permission to make decisions for his mother and that she was competent when she changed her will.
The direct evidence presented trial, they said, "showed that Brooke was competent and lucid at the moment she signed" the will amendment in question.
The appeal also alleges that the judge did not sufficiently look into a juror's claim that she felt forced into convicting Marshall.
"Nine days into deliberations, a juror sent a plea for help to the court — a note stating that she felt 'personally threatened' and so feared for her 'personal safety' that she wished to be excused from deliberations," the lawyers wrote, explaining that the judge allowed deliberations to continue and "the court refused to inquire."
Marshall and his former attorney, Francis Morrissey, who was convicted of helping Marshall defraud Astor, were convicted in October 2009 of grand larceny and other charges.
Prosecutors said they took advantage of Astor's declining mental state and had her sign over her estate to Marshall while she was suffering from Alzheimer's near the end of her life. She died at age 105 in 2007.
They recommended Marshall serve 1 1/2 and 4 1/2 years in prison, despite his age, but he was allowed to remain free on bail pending his appeal.
His attorneys had argued any jail time at all would amount to a "death sentence" for the elderly Marshall, who suffered from various medical conditions throughout his six-month trial.
Prosecutors are expected to respond to the filing that challenged the guilty verdict by August 11.
