Martha Stewart urges supporters to write to judge

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NEW YORK — In a maneuver that could backfire, Martha Stewart is asking supporters to write on her behalf to the federal judge who will sentence her in June for lying about the sale of her ImClone Systems stock.

Stewart sent about 100 letters to "friends and acquaintances" in response to offers of help after her conviction on charges of obstruction of justice.

"This isn't a mass mailing," said a source familiar with the situation.

Stewart's missive, dated March 12, provides a recipe for the ideal letter in support of a convicted felon facing a sentence hearing.

"... Please include your opinion of my character, my work ethic, my integrity and my probity," she said in her letter. "If possible, include any memorable experiences you have had with me to explain the basis of any expressed opinion(s)."

Legal experts worry that because Stewart's request was leaked to a Web site, it could create the potential for a deluge of letters, which may anger U.S. District Court Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum.

Meanwhile, Stewart's daughter said her mother is "disappointed over feeling like her life was wasted" after being convicted in the case.

"Everything she did is ignored over something that trivial, that maybe didn't happen," Alexis Stewart said in an interview on CNN's "Larry King Live" broadcast yesterday.

She said, in excerpts the network released Tuesday, that the homemaking icon is "incredibly saddened" by the verdict, delivered by a federal jury March 5. She said a prison sentence would be "incredibly wrong," but she predicted her mother would handle it well.

Martha Stewart resigned Monday from the board of her company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc., and stepped down as chief creative officer. She took the new position of founding editorial director.

She is to be sentenced June 17. Most legal experts expect her to receive a sentence of 10 to 16 months in prison, although a judge could allow her to spend some of that time at a halfway house or under home confinement.

Although the company has not speculated on the possibility, Alexis Stewart has been mentioned by some Martha Stewart supporters as a possible heir to her mother's media empire.

She attended each day of the six-week trial and broke down in tears when the jury announced it had found her mother guilty on all counts.

Martha Stewart and stockbroker Peter Bacanovic were convicted of lying to investigators, obstructing justice and other charges related to Stewart's sale of ImClone Systems stock on Dec. 27, 2001.

Newsday and The Associated Press contributed to this report.