Results tagged “courtroom”

The city could make some good money selling tickets and popcorn to this Gotti Jr. trial circus! Yesterday's episode starred Victoria Gotti, the unhinged wife of late mobster John (Dapper Don) Gotti and mother to Gotti Jr., who's currently on trial for racketeering. As Judge Kevin Castel moved to dismisses a juror who was criticized for her vulgar language and pro-defense attitude, the mob matriarch unleashed a profanity-laced tirade.

The Astor trial, which features the late philanthropist's son accused of looting his mother's fortune, has been going on for weeks—but that's not a problem for Judy Natkins and another woman named Gladys, who have been attending almost every day of the trial. The NY Times casts a spotlight on these devotees of the judicial system: "Gladys, who said that the trial has been a needed distraction after several deaths in her family, acknowledged she was among those curious about the celebrity witnesses, saying she paid particular attention to 'how they dressed, how they spoke, how they looked.' She confided: 'Barbara Walters looked terrific. Henry Kissinger looked fat.'" On one day, Natkins even joined reporters in questioning one witness, "Have you ever considered writing a book about your experience?" Gladys has attended the trials of Joel B. Steinberg, John Gotti Jr., and Robert Chambers while Natkins has been to Martha Stewart's trial and, in order to "see what evil looked like," spent a day at the trial of the police officers accused of abusing Abner Louima. As for the slow pace of the trial, the women are sitting tight, though Gladys said, "I’m leaving as soon as the Gotti trial starts up."

Today there's talk of the chaos that ensued after Remy Ma's sentencing yesterday. To recap, so far in this ongoing saga there's been an alleged theft, a shooting, a conviction, a Rikers Island almost-wedding, an attempted jail break, a sentencing...and finally, what is hopefully the last bit of drama: the courtroom outbursts.

Rose Morat, the 101-year-old victim of a vicious mugging caught on surveillance tape last year, testified at a special videotaped hearing in a Queens courtroom yesterday. Morat will turn 102 next month and Queens prosecutors thought it would be prudent to make sure her testimony was recorded, as the actual case probably won't go to trial for another year. Morat didn't seem to take the precaution personally.