This just in, from the AP:

Police say a woman they believe to be convicted Washington escort service operator Deborah Jeane Palfrey has committed suicide.

Police in Tarpon Springs, Florida say the body was found in a shed near Palfrey's mother's home Thursday morning. There was a suicide note, but police did not disclose its contents.

Palfrey was convicted April 15 by a federal jury of running a prostitution service that catered to members of Washington's political elite.

She had denied her escort service engaged in prostitution, saying that if any of the women engaged in sex acts for money, they did so without her knowledge.

Update: It seems that some of you aren't so sure this was a suicide.

Police: Woman believed to be 'D.C. madam' kills herself [AP]

Last year, Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the so-called "D.C. Madam," was suggested as a possible running mate for John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. But thanks to a development from earlier this afternoon, that probably won't be happening. From the AP:

A federal jury has convicted a woman of running a high-end prostitution ring that catered to members of Washington's political elite.

The verdict against Deborah Jeane Palfrey was announced in a courtroom Tuesday afternoon.

Palfrey has repeatedly denied the escort service engaged in prostitution, and that any sex acts happened without her knowledge. Palfrey caused a sensation last year when she announced that she would sell her phone records to news outlets to pay for her defense.

But the trial didn't reveal many new details about the service or the identities of its clientele. Republican Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana was linked to the case but didn't testify.

Well, even if it wasn't as explosive as expected, the trial yielded up a few new juicy details. Like the fact that one of Palfrey's escorts was a former professor and university department chair. Or the fact that Palfrey's prostitution service was patronized by several well-pedigreed lawyers (including Yale law grad Christopher Sorrow, who is presumably pretty sorrowful about being involved in this mess). Or the fact that Palfrey employed "testers," like trial witness Paul Huang, to evaluate the suitability of aspiring escorts (think "Consume-Ho Reports").

And the show's not over just yet. Palfrey has made a spectacle of herself from the start of this case, and we still have a sentencing and possible appeal to look forward to. So stay tuned.

Woman convicted of running Washington prostitution service [AP]
Professor for Hire [Inside Higher Ed via TaxProf Blog]
Four Former Call Girls Testify at Palfrey Trial [Washington Post]

The Hostess with the Mostest (Hos), alleged D.C. madam Deborah Jeane Palfrey, continues to make news. First, she's advancing an interesting new defense. From Big Head DC:

Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the accused “DC Madam,” filed a memo with DC’s U.S. District Court today, detailing her plans to move forward with a “Honey Pot” defense, under the representation of lawyer Montgomery Blair Sibley.

The memo alleges that “the United States Government has been directly or indirectly benefiting from the operation of her service by monitoring her customers and is thus equitably barred from prosecuting her,” according to Sibley.

And government officials were "benefiting from the operation of her service" in other ways, too.

Speaking of which, here's more bad news for Sen. David Vitter. From the AP:

A former New Orleans prostitute who says she had an affair with Sen. David Vitter has passed a lie-detector test and will provide details of the four-month relationship at a press conference Tuesday, according to Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt.

Wendy Cortez, whose real name is Wendy Ellis, says she had a sexual relationship with Vitter, R-La., in 1999, when he was a state legislator.

Sounds juicy. Stay tuned.

“DC Madam” Files “Honey Pot” Defense; Names New High-Ranking Govt. Official Who Used Escort Service [Big Head DC]
Flynt Unveiling More Vitter Claims [AP via WTOP]

* Slate debates Sen. Craig's arrest and plea. [New York Times]

* DC Madam seeks new counsel. [CNN Poli-Tick]

* Federal court, using wooden gavel, upholds NYC metal bat ban. [ESPN]

* Artist arrested for burning Burning Man man. [MSNBC]

Earlier this year, we devoted extensive coverage to the Akin Gump Escort. She was the legal secretary at Akin Gump who worked for powerhouse lawyer John Dowd by day, and alleged D.C. madam Deborah Jeane Palfrey by night.

Courtesy of WTOP, we now know more about the close working relationship between the Akin Gump Escort and the D.C. Madam:

"Why did you do this to me? I never did anything to you."

That accusatory two-sentence e-mail from alleged D.C. madam Deborah Jeane Palfrey to an escort she considered her "little sister" and one of her most trusted confidantes came moments after Palfrey realized her assets had been frozen by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

"My first thought because of the timing was that (Jennifer) was working with the government," writes Palfrey, in a series of e-mails to WTOP.

"Jennifer" was the name escort customers knew for a legal secretary at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, a prominent D.C. law firm. The woman was fired in May 2007, shortly after revealing to the firm that she had moonlighted for Palfrey's Pamela Martin & Associates between 2002 and 2006.

Fired? She should have been promoted, due to her intimate knowledge of servicing clients.

More discussion after the jump.

* Let's just steal Drudge's tagline: "JUDGE: PLAME HAS NO GAME." [Washington Post; Associated Press]

(But she does bear an uncanny resemblance to Patricia Wettig, who plays Holly Harper on Brothers and Sisters. See photos at right.)

* A lawsuit against Hillary's pollster, Mark Penn, has been dropped. [AP]

(Watch out: your employer might be reading your Blackberry messages.)

* Lots of lawyers among the D.C. Madam's clientele. [CNN]

("[B]ut of course in Washington it sometimes feels like everyone is a lawyer.")

* Escalation in the battle over executive privilege. [Washington Post]

(Bush Administration to Congress: "You wanna prosecute us for contempt? You and what prosecutor?")

Here's a quick follow-up on yesterday's Lawyer of the Day -- Senator David Vitter (R-LA), who recently confessed to having been a client of the escort service run by the so-called "D.C. Madam," Deborah Jeane Palfrey.

Check out this video, put together by the TPM crew. These were our favorite parts:

1. Vitter's daughter: "Way to move it, Dad!"

2. Sen. Vitter: "In life's most important moments, we're not Republicans or Democrats. We're parents."

Or, more accurately, philandering spouses.

3. The senator's wife, Wendy Vitter (also noted by various commenters):

"I'm a lot more like Lorena Bobbitt than Hillary. If he does something like that, I'm walking away with one thing, and it's not alimony, trust me."

If the Ginsu guy rings your doorbell, Senator Vitter, you'd best send him packing.

Update: Another ex-madam has fingered Sen. Vitter. See here.

Vitter Va-Va-Voom! [TPMtv / Talking Points Memo]

Earlier: Lawyer of the Day: David Vitter

Thanks to Senator David Vitter for making it so easy to pick our Lawyer of the Day. From today's Washington Post:

Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) apologized last night after his telephone number appeared in the phone records of the woman dubbed the "D.C. Madam," making him the first member of Congress to become ensnared in the high-profile case.

The statement containing Vitter's apology said his telephone number was included on phone records of Pamela Martin and Associates dating from before he ran for the Senate in 2004....

"This was a very serious sin in my past for which I am, of course, completely responsible," Vitter, 46, said in a statement....

This is not the first time Vitter has found himself in a sticky situation:

During his Senate campaign, Vitter was accused by a member of the Louisiana Republican State Central Committee of carrying on a lengthy affair with a prostitute in New Orleans's French Quarter. In a radio interview, Vitter then called the allegation "absolutely and completely untrue" and dismissed it as "just crass Louisiana politics."

We believe him. The French Quarter? How tawdry!

For a Harvard grad and Rhodes Scholar like Vitter, only the high-class escorts of Pamela Martin & Associates -- college-educated women, including at least one Ph.D. -- would do.

(Random speculation: Might Senator Vitter have been a client of the Akin Gump Escort?)

Senator's Number on 'Madam' Phone List [Washington Post]
Sen. Vitter Apologizes for Number Showing Up on Phone Records of Alleged Prostitution Ring [Fox News]

* NCIS investigating Marines in alleged killings of unarmed civilians. [CNN]

* Gives a new meaning to "Queen Mum." [CNN]

* Ohio AG, others looking into credit-rating agency investigations. [Fortune]

* Developments in DC madam case. [WSJ Law Blog; The BLT: Blog of the Legal Times]

* TO sues nightclub for using his name to throw party. [Dallas Morning News]

Two great gals that go great together. From the Examiner's delightful Yeas and Nays:

First, we learned that adult movie star Jenna Jameson supports Sen. Hillary Clinton’s run for president of the United States.

Now, we learn that another, um, Taboo Titleholder backs the New York senator’s White House ambitions: Deborah Jeane Palfrey, aka, the D.C. Madam....

Palfrey admitted that she’s pulling for Hillary in 2008. “I think she’s great,” she said. “She’s bright and articulate.”

But is this really newsworthy or surprising? That the D.C. Madam has a soft spot for a ho?

D.C. Madam for Hillary! [Washington Examiner / Yeas and Nays via Wonkette]

Preemptive clarification: WE don't think Hillary Clinton is a ho. To the contrary, as we've stated multiple times, we think she's fabulous.

We are merely referencing the familiar criticism of Senator Clinton, voiced on both the left and the right, that she's willing to say or do anything for votes -- i.e., that she's a political whore.

In an earlier post about the legal secretary at Akin Gump who worked for the alleged D.C. madam, Deborah Jeane Palfrey, we described the secretary as "no Miss Popularity." A source at the firm told us that "[m]ost people don't like her," due to her supercilious attitude. Various commenters echoed these views.

But a different source has more positive things to say about the Akin Gump Escort:

She was a secretary (never a paralegal) to partner John Dowd (attorney/author behind the Pete Rose gambling investigation and Rose's subsequent ban from baseball and the HoF).

[Ed. note: We previously pointed out that fact, as well as the coincidence that Dowd is now representing the fabulous Monica Goodling, back in this post.]

She was a moderately friendly, attractive woman, late 20s/early 30s, with dark blonde hair. I think she lived on a farm in southern Maryland and liked horses.

First, of course she lives in Maryland. Do you think the Akin Gump Escort would be a Virginia gal?

Second, a weakness for horses -- how clichéd. Does she enjoy long walks on the beach too?

Earlier: OMG: The Akin Gump Escort Worked For... Monica Goodling's Lawyer!!!
The D.C. Madam's Akin Gump Apprentice: She's No Miss Popularity
Akin Gump: Truly A 'Full-Service' Law Firm

Apparently we weren't the only ones who got blue balls from felt cheated by 20/20's report last Friday on the alleged DC madam, Deborah Jeane Palfrey. Professor Ann Althouse writes:

Were you, like me duped into watching "20/20" last night to hear what names they'd name based on the big list forked over to them by Deborah Jeane Palfrey, who's accused of running a prostitution ring in Washington?

“Our decision at the end was not to name any names,” said Brian Ross, the news correspondent who presented the segment. Mr. Ross said that the network went with a “conservative approach,” and that “based on our reporting it turned out not to be as newsworthy as we thought in terms of the names.”

At least they're being honest -- it seems -- in not pretending they'd belatedly discovered some ethical compunction about it.

Like Professor Althouse, we were also duped, seduced by ABC's advertising promising a salacious broadcast. We rushed home from a party on Friday night so we wouldn't miss the 20/20 special report, which we were expecting to be sensational. We were disappointed.

Sigh. Well, at least there was a shout-out to the Akin Gump escort:

Sometimes when Palfrey was unavailable [to answer the phones], a legal secretary at one of Washington's top law firms, Akin Gump, would handle the calls as well as go out on calls herself.

Using her e-mail account at Akin Gump, the secretary told Palfrey why she wanted to be an escort: "A day a week would be fun and spa money."

And from an ATL source, here's more gossip about the Akin Gump Escort, a former secretary to powerhouse partner John Dowd, the criminal defense lawyer now representing Monica Goodling:

This secretary likes to shop at high-end stores. She also drives luxury vehicles.

An escort with a weakness for fashion and the finer things? Color us surprised.

This could, however, be advantageous for Monica Goodling. If we were John Dowd, we'd instruct the Akin Gump Escort to take Monica Goodling shopping for a new suit, before Goodling's anticipated congressional testimony.

Brian Ross Reports on the D.C. Madam [ABC News / 20/20]
ABC fakes us out about naming names [Althouse]

Here are two quick updates to our earlier coverage of Akin Gump, the prestigious D.C. law firm, where an assistant to alleged D.C. madam Deborah Jeane Palfrey worked as a legal secretary. The second of these updates is nothing short of mind-blowing.

1. As a commenter pointed out, Tom Goldstein, the head of Akin Gump's Supreme Court practice, just posted an "opening" for a "special assistant." This led some to wonder: Could the madam-in-training have worked for the Supreme Court superstar?

It wouldn't be THAT suprising. The job announcement (PDF) mentions that an appreciation for poker is helpful. And we're guessing that the secretary-cum-escort has some familiarity with that game -- or a certain variant thereof.

Sadly, however, it turns out that there is no relation between these two events. According to a source at the firm, "this opening is completely unrelated to that situation.."

2. We believe our source. We've learned that the Akin Gump temptress worked for someone even more senior at the firm -- and even more powerful.

We have confirmed, with knowledgeable sources, what was previously rumored in reader comments. The Akin Gump Escort worked for John M. Dowd, the high-powered head of the firm's criminal litigation group. From his firm bio:

Mr. Dowd has prosecuted and defended significant criminal matters at trial and in parallel proceedings before Congress and regulatory agencies for more than 30 years. His practice focuses on the trial of complex civil and criminal cases.

Mr. Dowd is noted for his representation of a U.S. district judge, a former U.S. attorney and two U.S. senators. In addition, he represented a U.S. governor in a lengthy, high-profile criminal trial involving 23 counts charging false statements, wire fraud and attempted extortion.

A judge, a U.S. attorney, some senators? YAWN. John Dowd currently represents one of Above the Law's favorite celebrities: MONICA GOODLING!!!

Does this mean that telephone and/or face-to-face conversations took place between (1) the Magnificent Monica Goodling, of U.S. Attorneygate fame, and (2) the Akin Gump Escort? Presumably Monica Goodling had to interact with the Akin Gump Escort, whenever she called John Dowd on the phone, or came to his office for a meeting.

Please excuse us for a moment. Our head is about to explode, due to fabulosity overload!!!

More discussion, after the jump.

In our recent post about an alleged D.C.-madam-in-training -- a legal secretary at the powerhouse firm of Akin Gump, who allegedly serviced clients and worked the phones for Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the alleged D.C. madam -- we asked you for more information about this hardworking and multitalented young woman.

We are still accepting your tips. We'll kick things off with this info, from a source who knows the alleged junior madam:

First, she's not a paralegal. She's just a legal secretary.

This answers the question we raised yesterday about whether she might be a paralegal rather than a secretary. In one of her emails to Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the Akin Gump employee said it would be easy to balance her work for Palfrey with her "paralegal duties."

Our tipster continues:

Second, she has the 'tude in the office that she's better than the rest. Most people don't like her.

Third, in terms of her appearance, she has the typical Barbie look: blonde, shapely, busty.

Based on this description, we're guessing that this individual worked for a high-powered partner at Akin Gump. In our experience, legal secretaries fall into two categories: the total hotties, and the total notties, with precious few in between. They're straight out of either (1) the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue or (2) a bingo hall.

The top dogs -- name partners, major rainmakers, etc. -- got the hottie secretaries. Everyone else had to just cross their fingers. So if Palfrey's right-hand-woman is blonde and busty, she probably had a powerful boss at the firm.

More discussion, after the jump.

On its official website, Akin Gump proudly bills itself as a "full-service" law firm. And it boasts: "Our growth has come by understanding client problems and solving them with a unique combination of... practical... skills."

Truer words were never spoken. From ABC News:

A legal secretary at one of Washington's most prominent and well-connected law firms, Akin Gump Strauss Houer & Feld LLP, has been suspended after telling her bosses she secretly worked at night for the escort service run by the so-called D.C. Madam, Jeane Palfrey.

The woman both serviced clients and, at times, helped to run the business, Palfrey told ABC News in an interview to be broadcast on "20/20" Friday.

The firm said it would not make her name public.

But do YOU know the name of this enterprising employee, or anything else about her? If so, we'd love to hear from you, by email (subject line: "DC Madam").

A few more comments, after the jump.

A quick shout-out to a juicy story that we haven't written much about so far (and no, it's not 'cause we have anything to hide). It's the tawdry tale of Deborah Jeane Palfrey, aka the "D.C. Madam."

From ABCNews.com:

Alleged "D.C. Madam" Deborah Jeane Palfrey has given an exclusive interview to ABC News [for an upcoming investigative report on "20/20"]....

Last October, federal prosecutors charged Palfrey with racketeering offenses in connection with the business, which she contends was a legal operation. From 1993 to August 2006, Palfrey ran a high-end escort service in the nation's capital, charging a flat fee for 90-minute "dates" with women between the ages of 23 and 55 whom she termed independent contractors.

There has been some speculation that her clients may include high-profile figures -- politicians, pundits, and other inside-the-Beltway types. Palfrey has done nothing to discourage such buzz:

Palfrey has claimed that her service's clients were "upscale" and "came from the more refined walks of life." In March, she made headlines by briefly offering to sell the phone records of her company, Pamela Martin and Associates, to the highest bidder. She withdrew the offer after a federal judge ruled the government could confiscate any proceeds.

We can't wait until the phone records become public (as they inevitably will). To paraphrase what they say about politics, the ensuing scandal will be "just like Heidi Fleiss -- for ugly people."

"D.C. Madam" Speaks with ABC News [ABC News via DCist]