NBC gets Wilbanks interview; hot sauce maker defends himself

By MATT STEWART
The Gainesville, GA Times

The former attorney for Jennifer Wilbanks said the runaway bride should do "whatever she needs to do" to profit from her self-imposed ordeal.

Lydia Sartain's comments came in the wake of NBC's announcement that "Today" co-host Katie Couric would have the first one-on-one interview with Wilbanks.

The majority of the interview with the Gainesville native, whose cross-country bus trip on the eve of her wedding captivated the nation this spring, will be broadcast during the "Katie Couric Special" at 8 p.m. June 21.

Parts of the interview also will air during "Today" on June 21 and 22.

Sartain said media outlets nationwide had bombarded the 32-year-old Wilbanks with offers for exclusive interviews.

Sartain said she concluded her representation following the civil and criminal case that ended nearly two weeks ago when Wilbanks pleaded no contest to faking her abduction.

After a month and a half of being hounded by the media, Sartain said she believes Wilbanks should be able to benefit from the situation financially by telling her story.

"She lost her job. She's got bills to pay," Sartain said. "I think she has been so tortured by the media and some of the other wackos in the public."

Sartain said those "wackos" include the makers of "Jennifer's High Tailin' Hot Sauce" and the Runaway Bride action figure, which is manufactured in Connecticut.

"There are all sorts of people making money off of her," Sartain said. "I'm offended by those hot sauces and action figures."

Joe Lawson, co-owner of Pappy's Peppers in Lawrenceville, which produces the hot sauce, said they didn't intend to offend Wilbanks or her lawyer.

Lawson also said he doesn't plan to take the product off the shelves anytime soon.

"(Not) as long as people keep buying it," he said, adding that he sold about $7,000 worth of sauce in four days on the Internet after the item debuted in mid-May.