Bernard Kerik Trial Is A World Without 9/11

In what must have seemed to Rudy Giuliani like a scene out of his nightmares, yesterday it was determined that there is officially a room where discussing 9/11 is off-limits—inside the courtroom of former Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik's corruption trial. During a pretrial meeting in White Plains federal court, the judge told Kerik's team, "This is not about 9/11." Kerik was indicted of trading city contracts for free apartment renovations to his Bronx apartment from a mob-linked contractor.

In top of the 9/11 ban, the upcoming Kerik trial has already been marred by an unusual amount of drama and mudslinging. The federal judge in the case revealed that he was once a prosecutor under Kerik's old boss, Rudy Giuliani, while Rudy was a US attorney in Manhattan. That connection led to the judge getting solicited to give money for Kerik's defense. Kerik's team was also chastised by the judge for having a lawyer, Anthony Modafferi who heads the former police chief's legal defense fund attempting to smear federal prosecutors in the press. The judge said Modafferi was serving little purpose for legal counsel and added, “(Mr. Kerik) has hired Mr. Modafferi as a propagandist and chief fund-raiser.”