Accused Manhattan madam switches attorneys

Anna Gristina, the alleged Manhattan madam, is open to the possibility of a plea, said her new attorney, though they have yet to determine their courtroom strategy.

"Every case has potential of a plea," said Gary Greenwald, who replaced lawyer Peter Gleason as Gristina's attorney in the bail hearing at State Supreme Court in Manhattan Thursday. "It doesn't mean we're going to do a plea," he said, adding that he has to review evidence and meet with the district attorney's office first.

Gristina, 44 and a mother of four, is charged with running a high-priced prostitution ring for power brokers in New York City. She decided Wednesday night to drop Gleason and retain Greenwald, to avoid a conflict of interest, her attorneys said. Gleason had offered to put up his TriBeCa loft -- which he said is worth $2.5 million -- to secure Gristina's $2 million bail.

Justice Juan M. Merchan said he was prepared to disallow Gleason's offer, after much research and a memo from prosecutors that criticized the unusual request and urged the judge to rule against it.

However, now that Gleason is off the case, "there are no more ethical considerations," Merchan said. The judge urged Greenwald to fill out paperwork for a property bond but made no decision on bail.

Gristina's bond is unusually high for a prostitution case, the judge acknowledged. It reflects Gristina's flight risk because she went to Canada in 2008 while under investigation in a case that did not result in any charges against her, prosecutors said. She has a Montreal apartment.

Greenwald called the Canada trip a "red herring" and asked the judge to lower the bail amount. But Merchan said that between Gleason's loft and Gristina's family's properties, he saw the defendant having no problems putting up the bond.