Disgraced Attorney Who Planted Drugs on PTA Mom Asks for Jurors' Sympathy

By PAUL ANDERSON

A PTA mother’s attorney asked jurors today to award damages for “emotional distress” caused by two disgraced former lawyers who planted drugs in her car in Irvine and set her up to get arrested in revenge for what she said about their son in an after-school program.

One of those attorneys sued by Kelli Peters, her husband and daughter, told the jurors that while what happened to the plaintiff was “disgusting” it should not give her an opportunity to be a “Powerball winner.”

Kent Easter, 41, is representing himself, he said, because he can no longer afford to pay attorneys to represent him.

Easter, who was sentenced to six months in jail and 100 hours of community service in October 2014 for his part in the revenge scheme, was sued along with his ex-wife, Jill Easter, who has since changed her name to Ava Everheart.

Easter is also representing himself in his appeal of his conviction for false imprisonment by fraud and deceit. Jill Easter pleaded guilty prior to her trial and was sentenced in 2013 to 120 days in jail and 100 hours of community service.

Everheart did not show up to court today and was only represented by her image projected on a screen. It’s possible a verdict could be entered against her by default if she does not participate in the proceedings.

Peters, her husband, Bill, and their now-15-year-old daughter, are seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages in the case that drew national headlines when the Easters were arrested.

“This case is about justice -- the justice Kelli Peters and her family who have been waiting for four years,” Peters’ attorney, Rob Marcereau said.

Peters was detained by Irvine police on Feb. 16, 2011, after Kent Easter pretended to be a neighbor in a call to officers claiming Peters had drugs in her car.

Police found a marijuana pipe, Vicodin and Percocet in Peters’ car and questioned her, but they quickly grew suspicious of the allegations and refocused their attention on who would be out to get her.

The conflict between Peters and the Easters started a year earlier when Everheart arrived at Plaza Vista School in Irvine to pick up her then-6-year- old son, who was playing tennis in the afterschool program.

Peters testified that someone came to get her when Everheart insisted on speaking to her about how she could not find her son right away when she pulled up to the school.

Peters suggested that her son was just “a little slow to line up” in front of the school, but Everheart apparently took that as an insult to her son’s intelligence, Marcereau said.

“She took a simple comment as an insult,” Marcereau said.

The Easters began a yearlong campaign to get Peters fired and subjected her to other various forms of harassment, Marcereau said.

“Kent Easter and his wife planned and schemed to destroy the life of Kelli Peters for a year,” Marcereau said. “You’re going to hear how they tore Kelli Peters’ life apart.”

The Easters alleged that Peters had their son locked in the school and called on school officials to fire her. Officials later determined nothing had been done wrong, Marcereau said.

“You’re going to hear the Easters don’t like getting no for an answer,” Marcereau said.

Everheart next handed out fliers to parents outside the school demanding Peters’ dismissal and alleging “terrible things” about the PTA mother, Marcereau said.

When that didn’t work, Everheart filed a police report against Peters, which also went nowhere, Marcereau said.

Then Everheart sought a restraining order against Peters, claiming she was “stalking her and her son,” but that was also denied, Marcereau said.

Kent Easter then filed a lawsuit against Peters, but it was later dismissed because, “he knew he couldn’t win,” the attorney said.

“And just when they thought it couldn’t get worse, it did,” as the drugs were planted in Peters’ car, Marcereau said.

The attorney said Peters was “humiliated” in front of her daughter and the rest of the school as she was “forced to sit on a curb like a criminal as police searched her car.”

The stress became so awful for the family, their daughter could not sleep alone and she had to transfer to another school, Marcereau said.

Kent Easter told jurors the main dispute in the case was about money.

“The point of all this is how much money the Peters’ should get,” Easter said.

Easter acknowledged that “something bad was done to the Peters, but it doesn’t give them a winning Powerball number.”

Easter said jurors are “going to be hearing exaggerations and embellishments” about Peters’ encounter with police.

Easter downplayed her experience, saying she was not put in a squad car, her mugshot was not taken, she did not spend any time behind bars and she was “quickly cleared.”

Easter pointed out that Peters has done interviews with “20/20” and other news shows.

Easter said, “While it was disgusting and shouldn’t have happened to her,” punitive damages should not be awarded.

“You’ll hear evidence how I’ve already been punished,” Easter said. “I’m here representing myself because I can’t afford an attorney... I have three children to support and you’ll hear I won’t be able to pay any punitive damages.”

Easter noted he lost his job with one of the county’s most prestigious law firms and can no longer practice law.

“So this is my last jury trial,” Easter said. “And as a felon I’m disqualified from most jobs.”

City News Service