Results tagged “robertmorgenthau”

Cyrus Vance Jr. was elected Manhattan District Attorney last night, giving the borough it's first new DA in 35 years. Of course, the reign of prolific Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau is only ending because the the 90-year-old decided to retire earlier this year (he will to help out with the family farm). Vance, who was Morgenthau's choice to succeed him, told WCBS 2, "I intend to be a strong advocate for public safety, as district attorney. I've spent my entire career working on criminal justice issues, and I'm ready for that challenge." He also recently promised, "Safety on our streets is going to be a very, very important issue for our office."

When David Letterman announced that he was being extorted for $2 million on the Late Show, he had a special thank you for the Special Prosecution Bureau at the Manhattan DA's office with their help in the case. Now the Post reports that outgoing Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau let Letterman disclose the plot on his talk show!

The Plaxico Burress case is now in the hands of the grand jury, who will decide what charges (if any) are coming against the receiver. The News reports that the end of proceedings saw three Giants staffers share their accounts of the fateful November night—Director of Development Charles Way, VP of Medical Services Ronnie Barnes and Coach Jesse Armstead. And before any decision is reached, the Times tries to sift through all of the media gamesmanship on both sides to get at just what actually would be a fair punishment for Burress. One criminal attorney familiar with the standard plea tactics of the DA's office said one year's jail time usually would have been the norm for these sort of charges (Plax's lawyer Benjamin Brafman's offer of one year was allegedly rejected by his former boss, Robert Morgenthau.) Brafman is still whining to the press about the unfairness of the DA's hard stance against his client, now saying he is "deeply saddened by (their) lack of compassion." The grand jury, acting as "the conscience of the community," could decide as early as today if they found a similar sympathy in Plax's testimony. Update: That was fast: Burress was just indicted!

Former Giant receiver Plaxico Burress testified for three hours in front of a grand jury today, then followed his time on the witness stand with the first words he's spoken to reporters since the day he shot himself in the leg inside a Manhattan nightclub eight months ago today. Burress said, “I was truthful, I was honest and I am truly remorseful for what I’ve done, what happened and what I did. I just want to thank everybody — family, friends and fans — for their support.”

Mayor Bloomberg was running a tad late today when he flew down to Washington on his private plane in order to testify on behalf of Sonia Sotomayor. The mayor quickly livened up what have been my most accounts slow-going confirmation hearings with the early line, "I strongly believe that she should be supported by Republicans, Democrats and independents. And I should know because I've been all three."

Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau wants to hold a Queens tax preparer accountable for allegedly threatening to kill a prosecutor who's handling a grand larceny case against him. 54-year-old Jack Chang (not pictured) did a year in prison in the mid-'90s for funneling nearly $1 million from his clients to his own account; in April he was arrested on similar charges in a case that's being conducted by the same prosecutor who put him away the first time: Gilda Mariani, head of the money laundering and tax crimes unit.

Plaxico Burress's attorney claims that his client is getting no celebrity treatment from the Manhattan DA's Office. What's more, Plax's hotshot lawyer Benjamin Brafman suggests prosecutors should go easy on the football player after news that Browns receiver Donte Stallworth only received 30 days in jail in a DWI manslaughter plea deal.

Yesterday afternoon, a fire broke out in a century-old barn on the Dutchess County farm owned by Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau. Yes, Morgenthau may be Manhattan's powerful DA, but he's also a farmer—sort of. His family has a working farm, Fishkill Farms. Son Josh Morgenthau, who manages the farm, said the blaze took to the barn "like kindling," and the fire's cause is being investigated. The farm is also notable for some world history: Morgenthau's father was FDR's treasury sceretary, a meeting between FDR and Winston Churchill was held at the farm. Morgenthau is retiring this year and plans to spend more time at the farm.

After Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau announced his impending retirement last week, speculation began over who he might support to be his successor—either family friend and former ADA Cyrus Vance Jr. or current deputy DA and "righthand man" Dan Castleman. Well, now the cat is nearly out of the bag: Castleman offered his resignation yesterday, apparently because Morgenthau has chosen Vance.

     

Yesterday, longtime Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau announced that he would not seek re-election this fall. The 89-year-old, who was first elected to the position in 1975, told reporters, "Some people are slow to learn. It took me a long time to realize I was getting older... I recently realized I'm 25 years beyond normal retirement age. I decided I would not push my luck any further." Both the Daily News and Post report how his wife Lucinda Franks "repeated some questions for her hard-of-hearing husband." The Post adds that the press conference was "hastily scheduled" after it broke news of the retirement.

The NY Post reports that Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau, who has been the DA for the past 35 years, seek re-election this fall: "Morgenthau has begun privately calling top deputies into his office to deliver the news - which will instantly spark a crowded race for his coveted seat, several sources said... He's expected to make his intentions public in the next few weeks, the sources said, but hasn't yet settled on who he'd prefer to see as a successor." Morgenthau will be 90 years old this August. As recently as yesterday, Morgy told the Post he was still planning another go, though, "Of course that could change. But anything could change" (last year, he told the Daily News that he planned to run again, but added, "If I broke both my legs I might not run, but if I broke one, I would run").

Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau slammed the crane rigger who was responsible for a crane at a Midtown construction site, calling his actions "shocking" and "outrageous." The crane collapsed on March 15, killing seven people, and yesterday Morgenthau (pictured) announced that William Rapetti would be charged with manslaughter, as well as criminally negligent homicide, reckless endangerment and second-degree assault.

When manslaughter charges against three construction supervisors (pictured) in the 2007 fatal Deutsche Bank building fire, Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said of the tragedy, "Everyone who could have screwed up did screw up. It's just amazing the amount of mistakes that were made here."

Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau turned 89 years old today and shot down any rumors of retiring. He told the Daily News, "It's my intention to run," regarding the 2009 election, "I'm not announcing my candidacy today, but I intend to run." And food for thought for those thinking of running against him: Morgenthau also said, "If I broke both my legs I might not run, but if I broke one, I would run."

A doctor who practices in NJ with admitting privileges at New York Presbyterian Hospital. His 94-year-old mother. Her $832,453 savings. And a wall collapse in Upper Manhattan. In a case Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau called "a mini-Astor case," Dr. Robin Motz was accused of stealing his mother's savings since 2003.

The tragic death of a construction worker at the Trump Soho building has put the spotlight on the spotty history of a contractor on the project. On Monday afternoon, a worker, Yuriy Vanchytskyy (pictured below), fell 42 stories to his death when the molds he and other workers were pouring concrete into broke, causing a collapse into lower floors.

New Jersey police have arrested a number of members of the Lucchese crime family. In the process of breaking up a multi-billion dollar betting organization, cops discovered that the old school mafia family had also teamed up with the more street-level gang the Bloods. The two groups were working together to smuggle things like iPods, cell phones, and drugs into the East Jersey State Prison. The betting ring was fairly sophisticated, utilizing Internet sites, an 800 phone line, and personal interaction to process more than $2 billion in wagers annually. The smuggling ring was facilitated by a corrections officer who worked at the prison.

New York City is getting safer and safer. Well, at least Manhattan is. Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau told reporters yesterday that there have only been 65 murders in the borough this year, down 40% from last year. When Morgenthau took office in 1975, the borough had 648 murders, accounting for almost 40% of the city's total. The 65 homicides this year account for just 14% of the city total. The 88-year-old DA attributed the drop to "excellent work done by the police and prosecutors." Police stats project the entire city with 500 fewer murders this year, the lowest number since 1963.

Robert Morgenthau's stranglehold on the position of Manhattan District Attorney has lasted 33 years but today's Post tittered that he was mulling an "early exit." Page Six reported that a "well-connected legal source" said the 88-year-old DA was orchestrating a retirement to have Cyrus Vance Jr. installed for a few years. Apparently Morgenthau wants Vance Jr., once an assistant DA, in place to block his former protegee and 2005 Democratic primary opponent Leslie Crocker Snyder,...

David Lemus, who was convicted in the 1990 killing of Palladium bouncer Marcus Peterson in 1992, was found not guilty yesterday at the conclusion of his retrial. His mother screamed when the verdict was read and Lemus' lawyers reportedly appeared stunned. The jury took only two days to deliberate and the foreman of the jury from the 1992 trial was present during much of the retrial. Before his original conviction for the 14th St. club killing was overturned in 2005, Lemus spent almost 14 years in prison.

Anthony Marshall, the only son of New York society legend Brooke Astor, pleaded not guilty to 18 counts of criminal activity related to the handling of his mother's finances. The 83-year-old former Marine spoke in court once (to utter "not guilty") and, after his bond was approved, left the courthouse using a cane. He also apparently cried. Among the accusations the Manhattan DA's office made against Marshall and his former lawyer Francis Morrissey (a PDF...

Dare we say that Brooke Astor is rolling in her grave? Yesterday, it was reported that her son Anthony Marshall and his former lawyer Francis Morrissey would be indicted for criminal activity over the handling of her will. And this morning, Marshall turned himself in at the Manhattan DA's offices, to face charges of fraud, forgery and grand larceny. Or, as DA Robert Morgenthau said, "The indictment charges that Marshall and Morrissey took advantage of...

Robert Chambers, whose privileged Upper East upbringing earned the tabloid nickname "The Preppy Killer" when he killed a woman in 1986, was charged with 14 counts of selling and possessing drugs. Since two of the counts are for first-degree sale, which the Daily News reports carries 15-30 years, Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau said, "I would expect he would spend the rest of his life in jail."

Police officer Sean Sawyer was released and not charged after confessing to shooting an unarmed man in Harlem during a road argument early Sunday morning. The Manhattan DA's office claimed that Sawyer could have been acting in self-defense, because the other driver, Jayson Tirado, suggested he had a gun when he gestured and yelled at Sawyer. DA Robert Morgenthau said the "case is under investigation and is going to go to a grand jury. When there's a claim of self-defense, there is no immediate arrest."

Two men were arraigned for trying to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from billionaire Mayor Bloomberg. Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau outlined the two schemes:

Ten people were indicted yesterday for taking part in a cash-for-grades scheme at Touro College. Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau explained that students - and even people who never even attended the school - would pay thousands of dollars to change their transcripts or to buy diplomas. The accused include a Touro admissions administrator, a Touro computer center head, and three city teachers who "bought" master's degrees.

Can it be? The Sun reports that the Assembly "could pass a medical marijuana bill" this week, and the Senate will do the same. The lead sponsor of the Assembly's bill is Manhattan Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, who said, "There are thousands of New Yorkers who suffer from serious medical conditions who could have a better quality and longer life."

The law can be very cruel, even to cancer-stricken 71-year-olds. The Daily News has a feature on Barbara Jackson, who was arrested last month after she bought some bags of pot in her Bronx neighborhood. Jackson was diagnosed with colorectal cancer eight years ago, and tells the News she's been smoking for the past seven to restore her appetite.

"The marijuana calmed me down and gave me back my appetite. My taste buds are gone, but the marijuana helps me get the food down."

Continue reading "Cops Arrest Granny For Pot - "I Smoke It To Live" "

but can he still be found guilty of being really stupid?

A man was arrested for stealing $3.6 million - and the money was from a city bank account! Unemployed social worker Tracy Ball used the money to buy jewelry from TV-and-online retailer Jewelry Television; then he'd pawn the jewelry for cash to pay bills - and some other luxury items. When he was arrested at his Brooklyn home, the AP reported that investigator found him with "two huge plasma televisions, $35,000 in cash, and several expensive sport utility vehicles."