'Hotel California' Lyrics Case Dropped in the Middle of a Trial, But Eagles' Don Henley Vows To Fight On
A sudden twist has happened in the "Hotel California" lyrics case as New York prosecutors have dropped the case mid-trial. However, Eagles co-founder Don Henley says he is continuing the fight to recover a hand-written legal pad with the original lyrics to their hit song "Hotel California" that the band claims was stolen from them.
The trial came to an abrupt end after Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Aaron Ginandes informed the judge overseeing the case that the prosecution "would no longer proceed" with pursuing the case against three well-known collectibles dealers, rare-book dealer Glenn Horowitz, former Rock & Roll Hall of Fame curator Craig Inciardi, and memorabilia seller Edward Kosinski.
The prosecutor cited newly available emails that surfaced and Ginandes noted that these emails raised questions about the trial's fairness, according to NBC News.
Eagles star Don Henley reportedly decided last week to waive attorney-client privilege after he and other prosecution witnesses had already testified. These led to the disclosures that raised questions around the case as the defense was not able to ask him about certain things.
Witnesses and their lawyers used attorney-client privilege "to obfuscate and hide information that they believed would be damaging," ruled Judge Curtis Farber before outright dismissing the case.
Meanwhile, Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Aaron Ginandes noted that the "delayed disclosures revealed relevant information that the defense should have had the opportunity to explore in cross-examination of the People's witnesses."
Eagles Star Don Henley Vows To Fight On With Stolen 'Hotel California' Lyrics Case
Despite having the case thrown out because of a technicality, rock legend Don Henley says he will fight on to recover the stolen pad that contained not only the lyrics of "Hotel California," but also other hits from the Eagles.
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While the criminal case against the three defendants has been dropped, Don Henley's attorney stated that the music legend plans to go to the civil courts in his pursuit of justice, saying, "As the victim in this case, Mr. Henley has once again been victimized by this unjust outcome."
Meanwhile, the defendants maintained that they were rightful owners of pages that weren't stolen by anyone. One of them, Inciardi, released a statement that read, "The next step is building back our reputations."
Sale of Lyrics in 2012 Led to Case Surrounding 'Hotel California'
The case started in 2022. However, The Guardian noted that this came after authorities raided Kosinski's New Jersey home in 2019, which his defense team claims to be "strong-arm tactics" and "inappropriate."
Henley stated that he discovered some pages of lyrics from the album that included "Hotel California" were being sold online back in 2012. He even purchased one of these pages himself for $8,500 before filing a stolen goods report with the New York DA.
More pages from the allegedly stolen notepad then went on sale in 2016 at Sotheby's. However, the famous auctioneer agreed to cancel the sale but did not return the allegedly stolen goods.
The pad containing the legendary lyrics was said to have been taken by rock journalist Ed Sanders, who had been hired by the band to write a biography for the group. He reportedly said that the notes may have been abandoned in a concert dressing room or were given to him by Eagles band member Glenn Frey.
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Written by: Rick Martin
WATCH: Eagles - Hotel California (Live 1977) (Official Video) [HD] - Eagles