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By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
Honduras - The Source - The Root - etc

SDNY COURTHOUSE, Oct 31 – A man who had been arrested at New York's LaGuardia Airport at 1:30 pm was presented past 6 pm on October 31 in Magistrates Court in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

  While his docket number was not read out, and was not listed in the day's New Presentment, his name was pronounced "Ogozi" and he was said to have a passport from Nigeria which he is to surrender.

  He's charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, money laundering and receipt of stolen property. The US Attorney's Office agreed he can be released on $250,000 bond with two financially responsible co-signers; his residence in New Jersey must be inspected by Pre-Trial Services and so he was detained on the evening of October 31, even without docket number public. Inner City Press will remain on this case, and others, in the SDNY Mag Court.

Joseph Frederick has been working at the food delivery firm Plated, which his Federal Defender lawyer on October 30 described as "like Blue Apron."   

But on October 29 when NYPD executed a search warrant at his home at 245 East 178th Street, Apartment 5H they found 85 grams of crack, 600 glassine envelopes of heroin and three guns: a loaded .40 caliber High Point JCP semi-automatic pistol, a 9MM Norinco semi-automatic pistol, and a .380 caliber Ruger LCP semi-automatic pistol.

Assistant US Attorney Domenic Gentile told U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Magistrate Judge James L. Cott that two of the three guns were loaded, and that Frederick faces a ten year minimum sentence.

Frederick's assigned Federal Defender Ian Marcus Amelkin pointedly said that it would only be a ten year minimum if the gun or guns were discharged, of which there was no evidence.

  "My mistake," Gentile said, to his credit.

   Judge Cott again took pre-trial services into his robing room and emerged to deny bail. He explained to Frederick that he took the break, and summons in pre-trial services which has already issued a written report, because denying liberty pending trial is serious.

He told Frederick he could appeal, albeit to the Part I judge since the case has yet to be wheeled out to a District Judge. For now the case is US v. Frederick, 19-mj-10216 (UA / Cott). 

   A sealed indictment of Carlos Cruz for heroin and shooting a gun at an individual in the vicinity of 2427 Lyvere Street in The Bronx was signed by U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Magistrate Judge James L. Cott on October 28.

   On October 30 Cruz was arrested and, past 5 pm, brought before Judge Cott. Assistant US Attorney Domenic Gentile asked for detention, and Cruz's assigned Federal Defender Ian Marcus Amelkin argued for bail.   Gentile said that video showed Cruz shooting the gun. Cruz' lawyer said it was to defend his wife.

But what about the heroin? And Cruz' father having told Pre-Trial Services his son is unemployed, while Cruz through counsel said he is a barber with Cuts (or Cutz) 2000?

   Judge Cott summoned Pre-Trial Services back into his robing room, which he'd explained the day before as due to their being no written report ready. In this case there was a report, but there were discrepancies.

   When he emerged, Judge Cott ordered continued detention, while telling Cruz he is free to appeal to or re-apply for bail before District Judge Jesse M. Furman to whom the case is assigned. It is US v. Cruz, 19-cr-770 (Furman).

   Danibel Luis was arrested and presented on charges of bank fraud on May 1 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District Court of New York Magistrates Court. On October 28 he appeared again to plead guilty before Magistrate Judge James L. Cott with Inner City Press the only media in the Mag Court. It was a routine allocution, with interpreter and initial AUSA Elizabeth Espinosa now using the case to train another, Mr. Ferguson. Danibel Luis took a plea deal envisioning 27 to 33 months in prison for defrauding TD Bank.

  Apparently Luis had no one to cooperate against - up on the 15th floor of 500 Pearl Street a man who defrauded PayPay out of $95,000 was given no jail time and two years of probation because he cooperated. See here. What is the moral difference? We've called it a moral Mag Court, after murky, now call it when applicable mechanical.

Last week: Calvin Dubose was arrested at noon on October 23 and more than 24 hours later was presented in on guns and drugs charges.

  Specifically Dubose was charged as a felony in possession. The gun was in a lock-box, but the key was by his bed, along with 50 rounds of ammunition; also in the room were 8 twisty bags of crack cocaine, according to the SDNY prosecutors and then Magistrate Judge Debra Freeman.

  Judge Freeman to her credit rejected several other assertions or proffers by the government, namely that Dubose by running to the bathroom of his second floor apartment was necessarily trying to flee out the window over the bathtub. Nor did she credit the proffer that Dubose was present with a gun at the scene of a February 2014 murder for which he has not been charged.

  But she focused on the presence of drugs and guns in his apartment, where he is paid as a home health attendant for his mother.  After Judge Freeman's ruling Dubose continued advocating for himself, albeit to his assigned counsel.

 "Anything more?" Judge Freeman finally asked.

  No, Dubose's counsel said, whispering to him that he would call his mother. Dubose was taken back into detention. What will happen with that 2014 murder proffered by the SDNY prosecutors on October 24, 2019?  The case was not listed with a docket number but we will endeavor to get one. Update of October 25: the case is US v. Dubose, 19-mj-10030 (Freeman). Watch this site.