EDNY COURTHOUSE,
August 23 – In a three
defendant drug case in the
U.S. District Court for the
Eastern District of New York,
Abdullah Robinson on August 23
appeared, in custody, for a
status conference.
EDNY
Magistrate Judge Lee G. Dunst
agreed to exclude time under
the Speedy Trial Act until
October 28, following
representations by both side
that a plea bargain is
imminent. It emerged that a
co-defendant in the case
already pled guilty and was
sentenced to 63 months. So
what will Robinson be offered,
and will he accept?
The case is US v.
Robinson, 20-cr-366 (GRB).
Also on the EDNY
criminal beat, Inner City
Press' Twitter
beat on August 23, "EDNY
today is charging Steven
Molinaro of Staten Island with
being a felon in possession of
a firearm & ammo,
attempted obstruction of
justice & marijuana
charges. Some note he's the
grandson of former Staten
Island Boro Prez James
Molinaro.
#StateCaseFederalized."
In another EDNY
criminal case tracked by Inner
City Press, seeking a lengthy
sentence for a defendant, the
U.S. Attorney's Office for
EDNY on August 11, 2022 wrote
to Judge Eric C. Komitee about
a withheld 40 minute video,
stating among other things
that "the government does
contest that 'a party’s
sentencing submission is a
judicial document.'"
To be a
judicial document and
presumptively available to the
press and public, all that is
needed is that it impacts or
could impact a judge's
decision. So Inner City Press
filed with Judge Komitee on
that, and to make the video as
public as possible. EDNY said
the first was a typo, and on
August 22 made public most of
the video, which Inner City
Press has now made public on
YouTube here.
Inner City
Press filed opposition with
Judge Komitee, who docketed
it ("Letter as to Tyreik
Jackson addressed to Judge
Eric R. Komitee from Matthew
Russell Lee, Inner City Press,
dated August 12, 2022, in
opposition to filing under
seal of certain portions of
the Government's sentencing
submission").
Judge Komitee
asked the EDNY US Attorney's
Office to respond by August 16
at 5 pm. That Office did
respond, here.
Inner City Press
immediately replied:
"Dear Judge
Komitee:
Thank you for docketing Inner
City Press' August 12, 2022
letter opposing the sealing of
a 40 minute video exhibit to
the US' sentencing memo in the
above-captioned case, and
requesting that the government
respond by today at 5
pm. This is
Inner City Press' reply.
To be clear,
contrary to the Government's
assumption Inner City Press
does not oppose its
redactions, we have not been
able to see any of the video,
so there is no way to agree to
redactions not yet done...
While not unsympathetic to the
stated safety rationale, the
basis for redacting - would it
be, pixelating? - "Adult
Woman" is not clear."
On the evening of
August 17, Judge Komitee
ruled: " ORDER granting in
part and denying in part [105]
Motion to Seal as to Tyreik
Jackson (1) -- The court is in
receipt of the Government's
motion to seal Government
Exhibit 16 [105] and the
submissions of a media outlet,
the Inner City Press, in
opposition thereto [108]
[111]. The Government's motion
to seal is granted in part and
denied in part. The Government
shall be permitted to obscure
the faces of the Victim, the
Adult Woman, the Child, and
the other unidentified
individuals in the video. By
5:00 p.m. on August 19, 2022,
the Government shall file GX
16 with the Court, redacted
accordingly. Ordered by Judge
Eric R. Komitee on
8/17/2022."
On August 22,
after Jackson was sentenced to
120 months consecutive to any
sentence of imprisonment
imposed in Jackson's pending
state criminal case, the video
was made available and Inner
City Press immediately made it
public on YouTube here.
Inner City Press will continue
to cover the EDNY.
***
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