A judge Tuesday scheduled a June 27 hearing to determine if there is sufficient evidence to require a man to stand trial on a felony grand theft charge for allegedly stealing actress Frances McDormand’s Oscar from her table at the Governors Ball after the Academy Awards ceremony in March.
Superior Court Judge Mark Hanasono also set a June 20 court date to determine if both sides will be prepared to proceed a week later with the preliminary hearing for Terry Bryant.
After a court appearance in March, defense attorney Daniel Brookman told reporters that the charge his 47-year-old client is facing is “serious,” but said that he doesn’t think “that the facts of the case warrant” the charge, which could carry up to three years behind bars.
“… I’m sure that once all the evidence comes in that the case will be modified somewhat,” Bryant’s attorney said on March 28. “It’s our hope that this charge will be dropped in its entirety, but that remains to be seen.”
Bryant was arrested by Los Angeles police the night of the Oscars ceremony and released from jail in the early morning hours of March 8 on his own recognizance, over the prosecution’s objection.
Police said Bryant had a ticket to the Governors Ball at the Hollywood & Highland complex.
Bryant took a video of himself holding the Oscar at the motion picture academy-sponsored after-party and posted it online. It shows him holding the statuette and saying, “Look at it, baby. My team got this tonight. This is mine. We got it tonight, baby.”
A photographer who works for celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck subsequently took a photo of Bryant holding the Oscar while apparently making his way toward the exit and helped security detain him until police arrived, according to reports from the scene.
Bryant refers to himself online as an entertainment journalist and a film and music producer. His social media accounts also include photos of him at the Emmys, Screen Actors Guild Awards and MTV Video Music Awards.