Donald Sterling’s former confidante testified Thursday that she loved the former Los Angeles Clippers owner, but never tried to ruin his nearly 60-year marriage.
“I can’t break something that’s already broken,” V. Stiviano said.
Stiviano, 32, said she spent every day with the 80-year-old real estate mogul for 2 1/2 years and that he took her to Las Vegas, Dubai and Paris. She also said he told her as recently as Sunday that he loved her.
‘We developed a relationship of love for each other, but it wasn’t romantic,” Stiviano testified.
Stiviano, who has used the names Vanessa Perez, Monica Gallegos and Maria Valdez, met Donald Sterling at Super Bowl XLIV in February 2010 and began a relationship with him that year, according to his wife Shelly Sterling’s lawsuit, which on Thursday concluded its second day of testimony before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Richard Fruin.
The suit alleges Stiviano wrongfully received about $3.6 million in cash, property and cars from Sterling that was the community property of the Sterlings.
Stiviano described Shelly Sterling as “the evil witch of the West” and also called her a “bully.”
Stiviano and Shelly Sterling’s lawyer, Pierce O’Donnell, had several tense exchanges over the alleged money trail of checks and receipts the lawyer was trying to establish between Donald Sterling and the defendant.
At one point Stiviano told O’Donnell, “I love your sarcasm.” When pressed by the lawyer to elaborate on another aspect of her testimony, she replied, “Life is full of coincidences.”
Stiviano said two escrow checks totaling more than $1 million for the purchase of a home for her were made up of funds from Sterling and about 30 of her family members. But she said she did not know who contributed any specific amounts.
The woman also said she could not account for her possession of multiple bank deposit and withdrawal slips she had in her possession, saying some of them may belong to “Mr. Sterling’s boyfriend.”
She said Sterling suggested she put the home he helped her acquire in somebody else’s name.
“He wanted me to protect myself from future lawsuits,” Stiviano said.
Stiviano said he also gave her about $100,000 to invest in stocks and bonds and that she kept as much as $80,000 cash in a drawer in her home.
Stiviano testified she recorded about 500 conversations between herself and Donald Sterling. Some of the tapes were later leaked and racist remarks the former NBA team owner caused him to suffer severe penalties from the league and the team was eventually sold to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer for $2 billion.
At the end of the day’s testimony Fruin criticized O’Donnell for not giving him a chronology of the cash transactions, saying the lawyer was moving from one to another and leaving much of the presentation unclear.
O’Donnell said he understood the judge’s concerns and said he would make matters more clear when Stiviano concludes her testimony Friday.
— City News Service