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Robert “Joe” Halderman, the news producer whose attempt to blackmail David Letterman prompted the host to admit workplace affairs, was released from prison on Thursday.

He served four months of a six-month sentence for his 2009 scheme to extort $2 million in hush money from Letterman.

Halderman was granted time off “for good behavior.” The former “48 Hours” producer still must fulfill 1,000 hours of community service.

The plot to squeeze Letterman for money came after Halderman learned of an alleged relationship between the TV icon and staffer Stephanie Birkitt, whom Halderman dated.

In an odd twist, the newly free Halderman is up for an award at September 27′s news Emmys.

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Robert Halderman, the former CBS producer who attempted to extort David Letterman over the late night host’s sex scandal, is starting a six-month stint in jail.

He was led out of a Manhattan court in handcuffs today, having been sentenced to incarceration and 1,000 hours of community service.

Halderman pleaded guilty to charges that he’d demanded $2 million from Letterman in exchange for silence on what he knew about the comedian’s affairs. Halderman was involved with one-time Letterman employee-paramour Stephanie Birkitt.

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UPDATE – 6:15 PM -

David Letterman made the following remarks during tonight’s “Late Show” taping:

“I need to talk to you about a segment of my life here that began six months ago.  I found myself in some legal trouble, and pretty quickly, it was turned over to the District Attorney’s office here in Manhattan.  Now, I’d never been involved in anything like this in my life, and I was concerned and full of anxiety and nervous and worried.  And the people in the District Attorney’s office said, ‘This will be handled professionally, this will be handled skillfully, and appropriately.’”

“Well, the matter was resolved today, and they were exactly right – it was handled professionally, skillfully and appropriately.  And by way of demonstrating my thanks to the men and women who worked on this, I would like to mention their names now:  District Attorney of Manhattan Cyrus Vance, the former District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau, the Special Prosecutions Bureau in the D.A.’s office and, of course, the New York City Police Department.”

“Thank you all for your help.”

UPDATE – 2:45PM -

Gossip Cop received the following statement from David Letterman regarding today’s guilty plea from his extortionist:

“I would like to thank the District Attorney of Manhattan, Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., the former District Attorney, Robert M. Morgenthau, the Special Prosecutions Bureau in the D.A.’s Office, and the New York City Police Department.   When they became involved with this case, I had complete faith that a just and appropriate result was inevitable.  On behalf of my family, I am extremely grateful for their tireless efforts.”

ORIGINAL POST – 12:37 PM –

Robert Halderman, the man accused of attempting to extort David Letterman, will plead guilty this afternoon.

The former “48 Hours” producer had pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of attempted grand larceny in October 2009. He allegedly tried to force Letterman to pay him $2 million in return for silence about his sexual affairs, including one with show staffer Stephanie Birkitt.

Today’s plea will land Halderman a prison sentence of six months, followed by 4 and a half years of probation and 1,000 hours of community service.

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“Dave Moves Out of the House,” screams the headline of the print edition of a National Enquirer article, which goes on to claim, “David Letterman has moved out of his family home after failing to patch things up with his outraged wife Regina.”

According to the Enquirer, Letterman, who admitted to sleeping with female staffers, “is now living in his luxury loft in lower Manhattan while his wife and son stay at his mansion in New York’s swank Westchester County.”

An unnamed (and seemingly unreliable) source conveniently lays out the WHO, WHAT, WHERE and WHY of the Enquirer‘s assertion in two simple sentences: “Dave admitted he’s sleeping in the city after Regina let him have it… Regina told him to ‘get out’ and that’s exactly what he did.”

Well, Gossip Cop finds this all very odd especially since we know for a fact that Letterman, who sometimes stays in Manhattan during the week for his show’s tapings, is actually spending MORE time now in his Westchester home.

Additionally, a rep for the “Late Show” host told Gossip Cop that the moving out story is simply ”not true.”

Seems like just another Stupid Human Trick by the Enquirer.

What was his reasoning?

Get this: He claimed he wasn’t trying to extort Letterman. Rather, he was trying to sell the late-night talk show host a screenplay — about Letterman (and his dirty secrets). 

Halderman’s attorney said, “There was no extortion. There was a screenplay for sale… There was a commercial transaction. Nothing more.” Letterman’s attorney countered, “It’s classic blackmail, no matter how Mr. Halderman’s lawyer wants to dress it up.”

Gossip Cop would like to know what you think.

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The David Letterman case is set to begin today in a New York courthouse, and the TV producer, Robert “Joe” Halderman, accused of trying to extort the late-night talk show host, is expected – via his attorney – to ask that the case be dismissed.

Halderman’s lawyer plans to challenge whether the evidence against his client is sufficient, and is set to ask the judge to drop Halderman’s attempted first-degree grand larceny charge.

Relax, this is pretty much standard practice in criminal cases.

On Sept. 9, Halderman allegedly left a package in Letterman’s car that contained a letter, a synopsis for a screenplay (filled with personal information) that threatened to have the “Late Show” host’s world “collapse around him,” various personal photos, and portions of a diary belonging to Stephanie Birkitt, Halderman’s ex-girlfriend with whom Letterman had a long-term sexual relationship.

(As you may recall, Gossip Cop exclusively nabbed an impromptu interview with Letterman and Birkitt four years ago at the Emmys.)

In exchange for keeping quiet, Halderman wanted $2 million in hush money, a demand that authorities had tape recorded.

Last month, Letterman publicly (and painfully) acknowledged that he had sex with some of his female staffers.

Halderman, a producer for CBS’ “48 Hours Mystery,” pleaded not guilty, but if convicted he could face five t0 15 years in the slammer.

Gossip Cop will update you as the case unfolds.

For the most accurate celebrity reporting, check out GossipCop.com and follow us on Twitter – @GossipCop

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The National Enquirer is doing its part to keep the David Letterman ‘sextortion’ scandal going, even if it means resorting to the old trick of promising something exists when no one can prove otherwise. In this case: a supposed sex tape.

According to so-called “sources,” a studio surveillance tape is said to have “caught the 62-year-old star and a much-younger female co-worker in a compromising position… when they went outside his private office ‘love nest’ to another portion of the studio.” The tab claims the tape surfaced only recently, and that “a copy” may have been made before the original was erased.

Right.

Sources told the supermarket tab it’s “unclear” if Stephanie Birkitt, whose ex-boyfriend Robert Halderman is accused of blackmailing Letterman for $2 million, is the woman shown on the “grainy” footage.

OK. There is no tape.

Even by the Enquirer‘s reporting, no one has watched the tape, no one can identify who’s in it, no one can provide any details beyond the broadest ‘love nest’ rumors outlined in New York dailies weeks ago, and the bulk of the piece is filler about possible ramifications and background on the extortion case – but not about the “tape” itself.

A source close to Letterman confirmed to Gossip Cop that the existence of a sex tape is “not true.” Forgive us for thinking this ridiculous rumor is just a Stupid Magazine Trick.

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Gossip Cop often takes issue with TMZ for its intrusive videos and occasional inaccurate reports.

Just this week, Gossip Cop twice corrected TMZ, including an article titled, “Letterman’s Former Hookup Banned From CBS set.” The site claimed Stephanie Birkitt was barred from setting foot on the “Late Show” set when, in reality, she is on a paid leave of absence.

Nevertheless today we support TMZ founder Harvey Levin, whose phone records — thanks to a warrant — were obtained by the Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies.

The police went through Levin’s phone records to find out who his sources were for TMZ’s exclusive coverage of Mel Gibson’s drunk driving arrest and subsequent embarrassing tirade in 2006. That was a significant and accurate story broken by TMZ.

And while understandably the sheriff’s office was trying to find out who internally tipped off Levin, it’s incumbent upon that office to look within its own house for the leakers, not metaphorically break into Levin’s house.

The law must protect reporters from revealing their sources, but it appears the sheriff’s office is trying to circumvent this journalistic shield. Now some may argue that they don’t think of Levin as a “journalist,” and they are entitled to that opinion, but the same rules have to apply.

Also, one cannot forget that the sheriff’s office, while searching for the leakers within its department, was thereby privy to other calls made to and from Levin, which were completely unrelated to this case, and may have been of an entirely personal nature.

TMZ has its flaws, and we will continue to call those out, but it is also one of those organizations that at least tries to authenticate its stories. Usually cops stick together, but this time Gossip Cop is breaking ranks to support Levin over the sheriff’s department.

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The latest twist in the David Letterman “sextortion” scandal isn’t true.

Late this afternoon TMZ reported that Stephanie Birkitt, the woman at the center of the storm, has “been banned from setting foot on the CBS set where the ‘Late Show’ is filmed.” The site goes on to say, “sources tell TMZ that security at CBS is well aware of Birkitt’s ban from the set.”

We doubt that, because there’s no such ban.

A spokesman for Letterman tells Gossip Cop exclusively that there is no truth to the story, adding “Stephanie is on a paid leave of absence.”

For the latest in accurate celebrity reporting, follow us on Twitter – @GossipCop.

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It was another wild week in Hollywood! Let’s take a look:

THE GOOD

The two biggest stars in the “Twilight” constellation will be coming to screens near you in new roles. Gossip Cop confirmed that Robert Pattinson will STILL – contrary to Internet whispers – be involved in the upcoming “Bel Ami” (although not in another rumored role), and Kristen Stewart will be tapped by director James Woods for the lead in “An American Girl,” with her camp giving Gossip Cop exclusive confirmation and comments.

And while some mags had to settle for making nasty claims about Stewart, Interview actually got to speak with her, and we showed some behind-the-scenes video from her cover photo shoot.

We also confirmed that producers are planning to arrange a special United Kingdom fan event with cast members for “New Moon” before the film’s world premiere in Los Angeles. We hope to have new details as soon as possible.

THE BAD

This spot isn’t necessarily reserved for Perez Hilton, but “Scoop” managed this week to be wrong about casting, sexuality, philanthropy, and pregnancy. He hit for the cycle!

Hilton first demonstrated his talent for publishing anything that hits his inbox without checking the facts when he ran with a story about Lindsay Lohan signing on to “Celebrity Big Brother.” (Yeah, she’s not.)

Then he blasted Bob Dylan as a “sell-out” for pairing with a bank on his upcoming Christmas album, even scrawling “I [heart] $$$” on his picture. Um, Perez? Every single penny is going to charity. Oops.

What about Derek Hough? “Hold onto your skirt there, hun!” snipes Perez, who tauntingly asks, “Is it dark in that closet of yours, Derek?” According to the blogger, the Dancing with the Stars performer is a “gayface.” Not surprisingly, Perez provides . . . zero evidence. Once again, Perez can’t get his facts straight – like Hough. 

Finally, Journalism’s Joker made Mariah Carey pregnant. Battling medical science and his own track record in this area, Perez examined a photo of Carey performing and decided that she’s with child. And . . . she’s not. Gossip Cop can’t wait until Doc Hilton reports pregnancies for Betty White and Cloris Leachman next week!

THE UGLY

The week’s most stunning story was David Letterman‘s “sextortion” drama. While everyone scrambled to make heads or tails of the shocker, Gossip Cop remembered a weird personal moment from the Emmys four years ago - when we stumbled upon and interviewed both Letterman and Stephanie Birkitt, the woman now at the center of the scandal. They did seem to have a particular closeness.

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Just about four years ago – on September 18, 2005 – when Gossip Cop was a producer at Access Hollywood, I was stuck in legendary Los Angeles traffic en route to the 57^th Annual Emmy Awards. At a certain point, fearing that I would be late, I jumped out of the car and started hoofing it as fast as I could in my tuxedo to the Shrine Auditorium for the ceremony.

About three blocks away, I saw David Letterman, dressed in shorts and smoking a cigar, briskly walking away from the auditorium. With him was a woman dressed in black. That was Stephanie Birkitt, Letterman’s former assistant, with whom he had a sexual relationship, and who later took up with “48 Hours” producer Robert “Joe” Halderman, the alleged exortionist who reportedly used her diary and e-mails as proof of her relationship with Letterman in an effort to squeeze the talk-show host out of $2 million.

As I passed Letterman, who was to honor the late Johnny Carson that evening, I heard him mutter to Birkitt, “I’m not going in, I’m not going in” before plopping himself down on a nearby bus bench.

Surprised by what I had heard and seen, I had a cameraman from Access meet me at the bus stop, where I asked Letterman if I could ask him a few questions. He couldn’t have been more gracious.

First I asked Letterman what the heck he was doing on the bench with minutes to go before the Emmys. Letterman, seated next to Birkett, replied, “We’re just waiting on the bus.” Birkitt then added, “We’re actually about to go in.”

When I then asked Letterman why he wasn’t suited up in a tux, he joked that he was going to wear his shorts that evening: “This is it, this is… pretty expensive this is like an Armani,” before being cut off by Birkett, who said, “Are you ready?”

Birkett clearly enjoyed such a closeness with Letterman that she felt comfortable cutting him off while being interviewed on camera.

That was then. Now Gossip Cop hears that their sexual relationship ended before he married longtime girlfriend Regina Lasko in March 2009.

Gossip Cop also hears that there have been no recorded issues of sexual harassment. Letterman owns the production company behind “Late Show,” Worldwide Pants, and an inside source tells us there have been ZERO complaints.

As for how the talk show host is doing amidst the controversy, the source told Gossip Cop, “Eh, not so well.”

Remember to follow us on Twitter – @GossipCop for the latest in accurate celebrity news reporting!