Judge rules against Donald Sterling, Shelly will sell Clippers to Steve Ballmer

LOS ANGELES, July 29 (UPI) -- A Superior Court judge ruled against disgraced billionaire Donald Sterling on Monday, clearing the way for wife Shelly to sell the Los Angeles Clippers to Steve Ballmer for $2 billion.

Judge Michael Levanas ruled in favor of Shelly Sterling on all three counts, verbally writing off Donald's entire defense as "for the media, not for the court."

Shelly and members of the Clippers' current front office testified that the soon-to-be-former Clippers owner was twice declared mentally incapacitated and his ongoing ownership would potentially plunge the franchise into a "death spiral."

Levanas agreed with this assessment and ruled that Shelly acted properly when she exorcised Donald from the family trust and agreed to sell the team to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. Additionally, due to the historic size of the Clippers' price tag, even if Donald Sterling does appeal the decision, the sale cannot be blocked pending further trial.

"Ballmer paid an amazing price that cannot be explained by the market," Levanas noted.

"This is a new day in Los Angeles and a new day for the Los Angeles Clippers," Pierce O'Donnell, Shelly's lead lawyer, declared after the trial.

"And we want to go forward understanding that it was one woman who stood up against her husband, who had the courage to go to court and prevailed. So for the cynics out there, sometimes it works out O.K. This is a Hollywood ending."