| Former CEO Of Iconix Wanted
To Exclude Size of Stock Sales But SDNY Jury
Will Hear $28M
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- The
Source
SDNY COURTHOUSE,
Sept 30 – Neil Cole, the brand
manager charged with financial
chicanery was freed on $1
million bond on December 5,
2019 and allowed to travel
throughout the United States
by agreement of the US
Attorney's Office, contrary to
the "SDNY and EDNY only"
restrictions they routinely
place on less affluent
defendants.
SDNY Magistrate
Judge Barbara Moses accepted
the agreed bail conditions,
and said that they can be
appealed or asked to be
modified before SDNY Judge
Edgardo Ramos to whom the case
is assigned.
On December 29,
the US Attorney's Office
opposed Cole's subpoena served
on Baked by Melissa, where
Seth Horowitz, a Government
cooperating witness, was the
CEO. The US Attorney's Office
says the information sought is
not relevant, but rather a
fishing expedition.
On January 4
Cole's lawyers at Paul Weiss
wrote to Judge Ramos, "We
understand that Seth Horowitz,
now a cooperating witness for
the government, also was
scheduled to provide SEC
testimony in late 2018, but
that at or around the same
time that Mr. Cole's testimony
was rescheduled, Mr.
Horowitz's testimony was
canceled, likely at the
request of the U.S. Attorney's
Office, to prevent Mr.
Horowitz from testifying and
avoid creating a record that
could be helpful to Mr.
Cole... In July 2020, counsel
for Mr. Cole submission a FOIA
request to the SEC."
On March
10, Judge Ramos quashed the
subpoena of the Baked by
Melissa CEO, as lacking in
specificity and casting too
wide a net.
But the real
fight now in June 2021 is when
the trial will be. On June 1,
Judge Ramos disclosed that US
v. Cole is only the second
choice to begin on July 6. So
the US asked to suspend the
pretrial schedule and its
disclosures. The defense says
this is unfair. Judge Ramos
has set a June 11 hearing.
Watch this site.
On January 5
Judge Ramos held a proceeding
and Inner City Press live
tweeted it here
and below.
On June
11, Judge Ramos held another
proceeding, and Inner City
Press again covered it. The US
Attorney's Office asked to
postpone the trial from July
6.
Cole's defense
lawyer asked to go forward on
July 6, but lost that. He then
asked for Giglio and 3500
material sooner than the
October 4 new trial date set
by Judge Ramos.
Cole won
on one of those: he's to get
3500 material by July 15,
while Judge Ramos sees if he
can do a three week trial in
his own courtroom in 40 Foley
Square before October 4.
Now on
September 2 the Government has
opposed Cole's motion to get
the name "of an individuals
who provided information that
was the subject of a July 3,
3021 disclosure by the
Government." The AUSA says
Federal Defenders, which
represents the individuals,
already provided the name.
We'll see.
On September 10,
Cole filed a motion in limine
seeking to exclude evidence of
his sale of a million shares
of Iconix stock, saying
allowing it in would create
"unfair prejudice." He cites a
Supreme Court decision US v.
Socony-Vacuum Oil Co. (it's
from 1940), that "appeals to
class prejudice are highly
improper.
Cole argues,
"Evidence of a multi-million
dollar financial gain from the
sale of stock - particularly
in the face of current
economic challenges plaguing
many in New York and
throughout the country -
presents a serious danger of
undue prejudice."
On September in
an in-person final pre trial
conference, Cole's lawyer
argued that hearing "$28
million" would be prejudicial.
The AUSA said it show motive,
and Judge Ramos agreed, citing
US v. Quattrone, 441 F.3d 153,
179-80 (2d Cir. 2006). So it
will come in at the trial,
which Inner City Press will
cover. Watch this site.
The case is US
v. Cole, 19-cr-869
(Ramos).
***
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