Gossip Column: Texas Dolly Gives Kid Poker the Ultimate Compliment; Postlegate Saga Continues As Witteles Receives $27K in Anti-SLAPP Ruling

Gossip Column: Texas Dolly Gives Kid Poker the Ultimate Compliment; Postlegate Saga Continues As Witteles Receives $27K in Anti-SLAPP Ruling
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  • Attreyee Khasnabis May 13, 2021
  • 5 Minutes Read

The poker legend Doyle Brunson was all praises for GGPoker Ambassador Daniel Negreanu. He gave Kid Poker the ultimate compliment saying Negreanu is the only player who made him change the way he played the game.

Brunson has been around the poker circuit forever and has been regaling his Twitter followers with fascinating stories from the good ol’ days. He recently shared a rather intriguing story about Jennifer Harman and gangster Jimmy Chagra.

Speaking of exciting stories, the Postlegate saga took another turn as Mike Postle was ordered to pay Todd Witteles $27,000 in an Anti-SLAPP ruling. He will likely have to shell out legal and court costs to Veronica Brill and a host of other defendants he sued. Brill is seeking nearly $79,000 in legal costs.

 

Doyle Brunson Gives Daniel Negreanu the Ultimate Compliment

The six-time WSOP bracelet winner Daniel Nereagu had been feeling the heat with a long-extending losing streak showing no signs of stopping. He has already suffered back-to-back losses, first dropping a whopping $1.2 Million to Doug Polk before losing two consecutive heads-up rounds to Phil Hellmuth.

Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu

 

The GGPoker Ambassador found some reprieve when poker legend Doyle Brunson complimented him, saying that Negreanu is the only player who made him change the way he played poker.

Doyle Brunson
Doyle Brunson

 

On May 13, Brunson tweeted:

 

Given that Negreanu lost $1.2 Million to Polk in February and is presently $150,000 in the hole after two rounds of his High Stakes Duel II match-up against Hellmuth, Brunson’s tweet received a mixed response from the poker community.

 

The ‘Texas Dolly’ was, in fact, in the mood for sharing many stories earlier today, and he went on to share an anecdote about poker diva Jennifer Harman and infamous drug trafficker Jimmy Chagra.

Jennifer Harman
Jennifer Harman

 

According to Brunson, Chagra may be best-known for being the man behind the murder of Judge John “Maximum John” Wood – a hit carried out by the father of Hollywood star Woody Harrelson.

He dropped by Bobby’s Room during the Big Game, the legendary high stakes cash game that would see Brunson and Harman joined by the likes of Chip Reese, Johnny Chan, Phil Ivey, Sammy Farha, Barry Greenstein, and a host of other famous names across the years.

Here is how the story went:

 

Harman wasn’t happy about Doyle sharing this particular story and even went on to give him a cryptic message:

 

Danielle Andersen appreciated the story and called Harman a “God damn boss.”

 

When asked why she wanted Chagra to leave Bobby’s Room, she said she didn’t like strangers watching the game.

 

As for Chagra, his drug trafficking operations paid for his love of gambling, as well as a $1 Million Vegas mansion and all the trappings of a drug lord.

However, his involvement in the assassination of Judge Wood, who Chagra had tried and failed to bribe (Wood rejecting a “$5 Million or $10 Million” offer), saw him heavily prosecuted for his drug dealing.

Chagra eventually served 23 years of a 30-year prison sentence and was released from prison in 2003. He died of cancer in 2008.

 

Postlegate Saga: Todd Witteles Receives $27K Judgment in Anti-SLAPP Ruling; Veronica Brill Seeks Nearly $79K in Legal Fees

Alleged poker cheat Mike Postle will have to fork out almost $27,000 after a judge found him liable for Todd Witteles’ legal fees and court costs. The Poker Fraud Alert founder brought an anti-SLAPP motion against the man at the center of the now infamous Postlegate scandal.

Mike Postle
Mike Postle

 

At the same time, Veronica Brill is going after Postle to recoup her legal fees after he pulled out of a defamation lawsuit, leaving her with a hefty legal bill to foot. Brill is seeking as much as $78,600 in damages for what she paid to defend herself in the lawsuit. With 11 others in the same position, Postle could find himself facing bankruptcy by the end of the year.

Veronica Brill
Veronica Brill

 

Witteles was chasing Postle for $43,314.50 after the Sacramento player dropped his now infamous $330 million defamation lawsuit, which saw him target Witteles, whistleblower Brill and many other famous names in the poker industry.

Todd Witteles
Todd Witteles

 

Brill’s anti-SLAPP costs claims will be heard soon, but Presiding California Superior Court Judge Shama H. Mesiwala ruled in favor of Witteles, though his entire claim for costs wasn’t met.

Judge Mesiwala accepted that Postle’s defamation claims “fall squarely within the definition of a SLAPP suit” – a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation designed to curb valid criticism by placing onerous legal costs on the defendant.

Postle’s voluntary withdrawal of the defamation action just before it was due in court “creates a presumption that the defendant is the prevailing party on the anti-SLAPP motion,” according to Judge Mesiwala.

However, awarding Witteles $26,982 instead of the full $43,314.50, the long-serving judge called Witteles attorney’s fees “excessive and unnecessary.”

Witteles’ attorney, Eric Bensamochan, had billed $695 per hour for his work, as told to CardsChat.com, “Mr. Witteles is pleased that the court has found him to be the prevailing party for purposes of awarding attorney fees. While we are disappointed that the court cut the fee request down, it is something that falls directly within the court’s purview and discretion, and [we] will accept the reduced fee award without additional argument. Mr. Witteles intends on vigorously pursuing the monies now owed to him by Mr. Postle.”

Veronica Brill’s attorney, Marc J. Randazza, didn’t mince his words when talking about the case to CardsChat News, he said, “It is unfortunate that Mr. Postle appears to have received some terrible advice from either really piss-poor lawyers who didn’t have the courage to enter an appearance in the case, or from non-lawyers who decided to play lawyer. Either way — he seems to have listened to idiots.”

“California law is crystal clear on this,” Randazza added. “If you file a SLAPP suit, and you try to cut and run after getting hit with an anti-SLAPP motion, you are deemed the losing party and have to pay the prevailing party’s fees. Now, he [Postle] doesn’t even have a prayer of being the prevailing party.”

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