Anna Nicole Smith Conspiracy Shocker

Howard K. Stern, Anna Nicole Smith's former attorney and personal manager, is in shock after his acquittal on two conspiracy charges was reversed by a U.S. appellate court in California.

Two years ago, Howard K. Stern had been cleared of nine felony charges but was convicted on conspiracy charges for his alleged criminal actions that led to the death of Anna Nicole Smith in Hollywood, FL on February 8, 2007.

An L.A. County trial judge recently overturned the jury verdict and Stern's felony conviction on conspiracy charges regarding the obtaining of drugs for Anna Nicole under fake names, declaring "insufficient evidence" in the case.

The Second District Court of Appeals now says that Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Perry erred in dismissing the conspiracy convictions.

The federal court has now reversed the trial judge's decision, much to the shock of defendant Howard K. Stern, who now faces possible prison time.

"His knowledge and involvement was such the jury could reasonably conclude Mr. Stern, a lawyer, knowingly participated in the ongoing illegal practice of securing illegal prescriptions," declared the appellate panel.

"The verdicts as to counts 1 and 3 are ordered reinstated."

After its 34-page ruling, the panel will now decide whether to allow a new trial, dismiss the convictions on other grounds, or sentence disgraced lawyer Howard K. Stern based on the original convictions.

The court has also reversed the dismissal of charges against Anna Nicole Smith's psychiatrist, Dr. Khristine Eroshevich, who prescribed several drugs for the megacelebrity all the way up to her death from a lethal combination of several prescription drugs.

The death of the platinum blonde Hollywood star came mere months after her son Daniel Smith, 20, experienced a sudden, shocking death from a mysterious drug overdose as sister Dannielynn was born.

After the deaths of her mother and brother, Dannielynn was left as the sole heir of the estate of Vickie Lynn Marshall aka Anna Nicole Smith, which stood to receive nearly $1 billion from potential lawsuit settlements.

Howard K. Stern had initially claimed paternity, though DNA testing disqualified him as the father of Anna Nicole Smith's baby.

Vickie Lynn may have died, but her controversial case has been born again, with many legal observers expecting it to ultimately end up before the California Supreme Court.