Philip David Levens is smart. Yes, he’s smart.
The Hollywood screenwriter – [he wrote the TV series Smallville] – married to beautiful actress, Carolyn Stotesbery – with two beautiful kids from a previous marriage – has it all. How he got it shows how smart he is. Especially, how he got full custody of his kids.
Their mother, Kassandra, has not seen them in five years. The kids are 12 and 11.
It took a lot of smarts for Philip to block the mother from seeing her children. Brains, and connections.
Here is one version of what happened. It happens to be the version I think is true. In fairness, Philip has an entirely different version. I would be happy to tell Philip’s version, but he chooses not to talk to me. I have invited him to speak on the record. We spoke once – but it was not on the record. But I can assure you, Philip disputes almost every word of what is to follow.
I will try to insert Philip’s version wherever possible into this narrative about how a man got full custody of his children.
Philip David Levens with his latest wife Carolyn Stotesbery.
Once again, what follows is the version of the story of how Philip got custody of his children that I suspect is the truth. I want to make it clear that some or all of it may not be the truth – and that my sources – and I have spoken to many other than just the mother – are sympathetic to her and not fans of Philip.
Kassandra Left Philip, Not Vice Versa
Philip married, and might have continued in his marriage to Kassandra – a tall, blonde model who gave up her career to be a housewife and mother.
Kassandra turned over her life savings to him – even bought the house for them – which Philip put in his name – for Philip claimed he had spent one million dollars getting out of his last marriage to a woman named Paulina.
Kassandra and Philip Levens
Kassandra got pregnant three times. The first occurred before they were married. That one did not work out well.
Philip found out – before they got married – that Kassandra lied about her age; she said she was 29, when she was actually 31.
According to the version I believe is true, Philip was so angry about the lie that he punched Kassandra in her stomach and broke up with her.
She had a miscarriage.
Philip later changed his mind about the breakup and promised Kassandra the physical violence would never happen again. Sure, Kassandra was stupid to go back but, then again, she blamed herself. She thought she was stupid to lie to him in the first place.
Besides, Philip assured her, it would never happen again.
They got married and Kassandra got pregnant twice more. And to his credit, Philip did not punch Kassandra when she was pregnant. Both times the children were born healthy – a girl and a boy.
Philip owned a collection of guns – some of them reportedly are illegal.
Philip was big on self-defense. But he could not carry machine guns in California – in fact, many of his guns were illegal. He started bodybuilding. And with Philip – he’s smart – whatever he did, he did the best.
He seems to have found that certain pharmaceuticals helped enhance his muscular strength and he began to take them. Philip went from modestly built to a hulk.
Philip, before he bulked up – with his then-wife Kassandra.
Philip David Levens bulked up.
This had side effects. Whatever he was taking seemed to make him need to satisfy his sexual urges on a frequent basis. He also developed what appeared to be uncontrollable fits of rage at times. Once he, allegedly, beat up a much smaller, brown-skinned man who was a parking lot attendant. Afterward, he said maybe that will teach the man to go back where he belongs.
On another occasion, he swore at and threatened a well known black woman – who drove in a manner that was inconsistent with Philip’s ideals of good driving. A witness saw this and said the woman was terrified at his screaming and the look in his eye and the threatening way Philip appeared to be ready to get out of his car and teach the lady to know her place, both as a matter of her race and her gender.
Philip, I suspect, would deny these events ever happened.
Matching the growing bulk of his chest, neck, and arms, Philip was a very good provider. He was a successful showrunner and screenwriter, often hired to write pilots for shows producers wanted to get on the air.
And he had a beautiful wife, Kassandra. She was there to have babies for him, and satisfy him. He had a word for the latter – which was for her to “sate” him.
Kassandra Levens at the beach.
It became his habit to call his wife to the bedroom or his home office, any time, day or night, and utter two words, “Sate me.”
Kassandra understood what he meant and tried to oblige. She never was sated herself – not once – but she did her best to “sate” Philip each time he commanded.
This is not to suggest she never enjoyed a moment of their sex life together. She never was sated, true. But she tried to enjoy pleasing her husband.
Sometimes, Philip could not restrain his need for sating, even when the children were awake or nearby. They were toddlers and Kassandra could not leave them alone for long.
When Philip Levens required sating, this faithful husband looked to his obedient wife to do the needful.
Sometimes, she was ill, or tired, from taking care of the babies – even the most obedient wife sometimes cannot get in the mood to sate a husband when children are crying, sick or hungry.
This annoyed Philip. He had no time to romance her every time he needed sating. This was not something that could wait until evening – with candles and wine and soft music – after the children went to bed.
When he required sating, even if the kids’ diapers needed to be changed, or the kids needed to be fed, or were running around crying in the other room – a wife – according to Philip – must oblige – that’s the law – moral and legal law – God’s law.
He would come in a room and tell his wife – who was often with the children at the time – and utter the words, “sate me.”
If she did not oblige – for women are capricious and do not always find such invitations appealing even from a specimen as wondrous as Philip – and would to tell him “no” – he became insistent.
If she, in turn, insisted, he had an efficacious remedy – one that seemed to whet his amorous propensities. When she would not sate him at the height of need, he would scream. When that did not work, he beat her.
Sometimes she would fight back. One time she bit his hand when his fist met her mouth. It was a good thing for Philip that he was physically stronger than Kassandra – for she always wound up losing – and, if she was not too bruised or shaken – she would do the needful.
Kassandra – sometimes holding back tears, sometimes crying, sometimes with a black eye – would sate him.
In time, Philip’s need to be sated was so frequent that sometimes the kids could not be kept out of sight or in range of hearing.
Kassandra was repulsed. She wept instead of feeling passion. This enraged Philip – and he would – as head of household – correct her.
He was glad he was physically stronger. He was a mesomorph – muscular, athletic – and he liked to mix it up. Philip would never back down. He would secure Kassandra, then get himself sated.
Philip David Levens had needs like other men.
For his part, Philip denies he ever laid a hand on Kassandra, or any woman. He would, I am sure, if he spoke on the record, [which he will not] deny he ever required anyone to sate him.
He would likely say my version of the story is a tissue of lies; and I am informed by Kassandra, her attorney, her friends, her family, some members of his own family who don’t like him, and other witnesses friendly to her. They are lying in unison – and though several independently said Philip beat the living crap out of Kassandra, I think he would say they are lying or misinformed.
But he doesn’t say anything, because he won’t speak on the record. Why should he? He has the children.
Kassandra is out of the children’s life.
He has the successful career.
Why respond to a stupid blog?
Public records and Sources Suggest the Opposite
In court, under oath, Philip admitted he may have lightly tapped Kassandra once or twice – maybe thrice – a little tap. But it was only to defend against her. She was aggressive. Punching, scratching, spitting, kicking, pushing.
One time he allegedly punched Kassandra so hard in the head, surgeons had to remove her eyeball and place it back in the socket.
Philip said her eye ran into a doorknob.
Some beatings the neighbors heard – as Kassandra ran out into the street crying. Police were called at least once, but Philip fled the scene.
Kassandra did not press charges. She didn’t want her husband arrested. That could be ruinous to the family. Besides, the beatings were not every day. Sometimes weeks would go by without a beating. Sometimes months.
And it is not that they did not have a life. There was tenderness sometimes – and life with the children. Philip made good money; they lived in a lovely home in Los Angeles. Kassandra was reluctant to leave.
Reportedly, Barbara Streisand overheard Philip bullying his wife and she berated him at a party.
There was glamour also.
Maybe that’s what kept Kassandra hanging on. They would go to big Hollywood parties and Philip would show off his beautiful wife. Sometimes, he had to scold her too.
There was one party – which Barbara Streisand attended – and she overheard the way Philip spoke to Kassandra and came over and bluntly told him he was not even a man.
Kassandra had her little girl at the party – and Streisand overheard him scolding Kassandra.
She walked over to him, looked him the eye and pointing to the little girl, Streisand said, “Maybe one day, that little girl will teach you how to become a man.”
Philip was so starstruck that all he could say to his wife at the moment was, “Did you see who that was? That was Barbara Streisand!”
His wife thought Philip missed the whole point of why Streisand bothered to come over to speak to him, but she didn’t dare say it.
Kassandra Became More Disobedient
Then came another problem. It appeared there was a chance Philip was sexually molesting their daughter. A social worker filed a report.
Philip was in more of a ‘beating up Kassandra’ mood than usual – for she was more disobedient than ever – maybe because of her suspicions about the daughter.
One day, he gave her a good shellacking. Kassandra fled the home with her kids and went to a domestic safe house.
Philip was furious, but he may have also been scared. What if he was charged with domestic battery – what if he was charged with child abuse?
Happily, Philip had wealth and law enforcement connections – and was willing to use them. Kassandra had no money of her own and she was reluctant to use the law against Philip. Besides, she wasn’t sure if Philip was really abusing her daughter. She would never want him falsely accused. She thought the best thing was to escape the beatings and sort this out – and stay away for a while.
Good thing she did not press for charges. I have seen the social workers’ report. It certainly is suspicious – but little girls might be confused about why and how a father plays with them when they are naked.
Philip might be in prison today – or registered as a sex offender if Kassandra was smart like Philip.
But even though Philip is smart, smarter than Kassandra, he did not know if Kassandra would press charges. He knew he beat the hell out of her many times. [Only he knows if he molested his daughter.] So he was scared.
He consulted his law enforcement friends. They set up a plan.
Philip hired a thug named Gary Mazel to spend time with her – to pretend to be her protector – and to get a recording of Kassandra asking Mazel to hurt Philip.
Gary Mazel was hired by Philip to put a ‘hit’ on himself.
Solicitation to murder. That was the plan.
Mazel was to set up Kassandra – to act as a friend [while secretly working for Philip] and induce Kassandra to say on tape she wanted Philip killed. Of course, Mazel had no intention of hurting Philip. He was being paid by him.
They had it figured: Even if Mazel asked Kassandra 1000 times – telling her it was the only way to protect her children – and Kassandra refused 999 times – all she had to do was say “yes” once and they got her for solicitation to murder.
Kassandra would go to prison and Philip would be safe from prosecution and get the children.
Philip had his good friend, Los Angeles Homicide Detective Barry Tellis on standby, waiting to make the arrest.
LA Homicide Det. Barry Tellis, a friend of Philip Levens, arrested his wife.
Tellis is such a good friend that he went to Philip’s July 2019 wedding to Carolyn Stotesbery – a star-studded gathering of Hollywood’s beautiful people.
Philip not only had Det. Tellis waiting in the wings, he had his lawyer, Marci Levine, advising him. Her brother, Darren Levine, was in charge of target crimes for the Los Angeles DA office.
Philip Leven’s attorney’s brother – Darren Levine – as Deputy DA – oversaw the trial against Philip’s wife.
It was a smart plan – especially since in cases of solicitation to do bodily harm or murder, a battered wife defense cannot be used at trial.
Philip’s years of allegedly beating his wife could not be introduced as evidence or as a defense. Any attempt Kassandra might make to get him arrested after they arrested her for solicitation would be rejected by dint of her more serious crime – solicitation to murder.
And stupid Kassandra. She kept holding back on pressing charges. She did not want the father of her children barred from seeing his children. She did not want to ruin his life. She was willing to share custody – or, if by chance, Philip would stop beating her – she might consider going back.
So she waited – and Mazel kept coming around, telling her stories, trying to get her to agree – while he secretly recorded – to let him, or someone he could hire, kill Philip.
She wouldn’t agree. Mazel could not get a recording of Kassandra agreeing to let Mazel do a hit on Philip.
Time was passing. Philip was nervous. Kassandra might go to authorities any time. In fact, every time Mazel suggested murdering Philip, Kassandra said no, she should go file a criminal complaint against Philip.
Even with his law enforcement connections, Philip might not be able to quash a child abuse or domestic abuse charge.
Philip consulted with Mazel repeatedly. And funny, Philip, smart as he is, did not know Mazel was secretly recording him. [That’s how we know Philip hired Mazel.]
Finally, they decided – perhaps with a little help from Philip’s law enforcement friends – to just go ahead and get her arrested – with or without a recording.
Mazel came to Kassandra and said he sent somebody over to talk to Philip and things escalated – and it was tragic – but Philip was dead. He was killed by the man Mazel sent. Philip was not dead of course; this was merely a story made up by Mazel.
Kassandra did not believe him. This they had expected. They had Det. Tellis waiting by the phone – in order to pretend he was from the city morgue. Mazel called Tellis. He gave the phone to Kassandra. She asked if her husband was dead.
Tellis lied to her. He said he was from the morgue and yes, Philip was dead; his body was in the morgue. Kassandra was shocked.
She said he had not asked for this. But they told her to come down to the police department. The first thing they did was to take her kids away while they interrogated her for hours.
I have read the transcripts of the police interrogating this woman – who had fled her home – living in a domestic shelter – after having been beaten. Nowhere does she admit she wanted Mazel to hurt Philip. But they arrested her anyway. Charged her with solicitation to murder.
What was their evidence? Gary Mazel. The man who was being paid by Philip. He told police Kassandra solicited him to kill Philip and that was enough. He was promised immunity for his [perjured] testimony.
Because she had no money and the charge was so serious, they knew she wouldn’t make bail. And if you can’t make bail – you’re done. You will take a plea deal. Philip won.
But Kassandra was stubborn. She would not take a plea deal. She rotted in jail for 13 months awaiting trial. The kids went to Philip – who repeatedly told them their mother was evil and was going away. He was the only one who loved them.
Kassandra with her daughter and son – on the day her son was born. She said she has – in the five years she has been bereft of her children -looked at this picture “one million times.”
Mazel would later testify in court – without any recording to back it up – with nothing more than his word – that Kassandra wanted Philip killed.
Philip’s friends, Homicide Detective Barry Tellis and Deputy DA Darren Levine – [his attorney’s brother] – were on hand to ensure justice was done every inch of the way.
The jury convicted Kassandra of the lesser offense of soliciting Mazel to do Philip bodily harm but did not believe Mazel that she wanted Philip murdered.
The jury acquitted her of the more serious offense of soliciting Mazel to murder Philip. [She’d be in prison today if they convicted her of that.] She was released right after trial – with time served – 13 months.
But the trial was rife with injustice.
An innocent woman might have been convicted
Somehow, the jury never understood this was a setup, that Philip hired Mazel.
The jury never got to hear the tape recordings Mazel made, making financial deals with Philip – which would have proven that Philip was not in the least afraid of Mazel [as he testified he was]. Mazel was working for Philip to set up Kassandra.
The jury also never heard how Mazel called – it was recorded – Kassandra’s attorney, Mark Overland, and tried to come clean – to tell him that Philip set up Kassandra and she was innocent. [And that Philip was a child abuser.]
The jury also never got to know that shortly after Mazel made the call to her attorney – and was prepared to change his earlier statement to police – and testify that Kassandra was innocent –that police [Barry Tellis] and the DA [Levine] charged Mazel with a felony – threatening him with three years in prison if his story did not go back to the original and jibe with what Philip needed to get the conviction.
Gary Mazel told Kassandra’s attorney that James Duff – creator of The Closer – was involved in setting up Kassandra. Duff is Philip’s close friend and perhaps Hollywood’s best-connected man to law enforcement. In Los Angeles, you don’t want to mess around with James Duff.
And saving three years of prison time – which the jury never heard about – Mazel testified that Kassandra wanted Philip killed. He testified to that – a gigantic – life-ruining perjury. But Mazel did not go to prison – not for a day.
The man hired by Philip to set up his wife perjured himself – and ruined a mother’s life – so he could walk free.
Because it was a solicitation charge, Kassandra’s attorney could not introduce evidence of how Philip had beaten her for years.
And so Philip got the kids and Kassandra cannot see them.
She is allowed to speak to her children three times a week via Skype for 10 minutes each call – and, to show you how strict Philip is, he often cancels calls without notice.
What can she do? She’s the felon.
On their son’s birthday, Philip chose not to allow Kassandra to speak to her son. He does that.
But what can she do?
I think the story I have told is a true story. I invite Philip Levens to comment. But why should he – he has it all. And he’s smart.
Anything he says, if it is untrue, might be used against him.
