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SDNY COURTHOUSE, Aug 15 – When former Congressman Chris Collins came up for sentencing on January 17, he and his lawyers were ready with arguments about the Boy Scouts. 

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Vernon S. Broderick was ready with a statement that he had not considered Collins' political views in imposing sentence on him, ultimately 26 months in a prison camp in Pensacola, Florida, to begin on March 17. Hear Inner City Press recap on WBEN Radio, here.

 Now in August, as Collins pushes for a second delay of surrender, Judge Broderick invited a status letter. It was filed late on August 14: "Re: United States v. Christopher Collins, et al., S1 18 Cr. 567 (VSB) Dear Judge Broderick: We write in response to the Court’s August 6, 2020 Order directing the parties to provide additional information about COVID-19-related restrictions and procedures related to defendants surrendering to FPC Pensacola, where Mr. Collins has been designated to serve his sentence. The following information reflects the Government’s current understanding in light of conversations with representatives of the Bureau of Prisons (“BOP”). The BOP has requested that we emphasize that this information is subject to change based upon the dictates of public health, local conditions in Florida, or the needs of the prison population. The BOP as a whole, and FPC Pensacola in particular, are currently operating under Phase 9 of the BOP’s Coronavirus Action Plan (“Action Plan”). Under the Action Plan, each BOP instution is required to designate specific quarantine and isolation areas with capacity sufficient to accomdate the expected population. When a new prisoner arrives at the facility, the prisoner undergoes an initial COVID-19 screening. That screening includes a check for physical symptoms of the disease, a temperature check, and a COVID-19 diagnostic test. Inmates who test positive or exhibit COVID-19 symptoms are immediately placed in medical isolation until they meet CDC guidelines for integration into the prison population. New inmates who test negative for the disease and exhibit no symptoms are placed into quarantine for 14 days. During the 14-day quarantine period, inmates’ temperatures are checked daily and they are monitored for other symptoms of COVID-19. At the end of the 14-day period, if an inmate has remained asymptomatic, he is screened and tested again. If the inmate continues to test negative and has no other symptoms, he is released into the general population. At FPC Pensacola, incoming prisoners are quarantined in D-Unit, a dormitory-style unit made up of sleeping cubes surrounded by 6-foot-tall cinder block walls. Typically D-Unit houses 118 inmates. There are eight sinks, eight showerheads, and eight toilets in the unit. Currently FPC Pensacola expects that, at the time of Mr. Collins’s surrender, there will be two inmates already in quarantine and one arriving the day after he does. Although additional inmates may enter D-Unit during Mr. Collins’s quarantine period, there is sufficient space in the dormitory for each quaranting prisoner to have his own cinder-block cube, to maintain social distance from other inmates, and to have his own sink and shower. Mask use is required in common areas. Medical rounds are conducted at least twice a day, or more frequently if needed. During the 14-day quarantine, prisoners do not have access to email or phones for social calls. Necessary legal calls can be arranged with advance notice.

 FPC Pensacola has reserved the Visting Room as the isolation facility for any prisoner who tests positive form COVID-19 or exhibits symptoms. Additional rooms have been identified in the event more than one prisoner must be isolated. Once a new inmate at FPC Pensacola clears quarantine, he is placed into the general population. Currently the general population of FPC Pensacola consists of approximately 310 inmates, a significant reduction from the pre-pandemic population of over 600 that has resulted from the BOP’s system-wide efforts to reduce prisoner density. Within the general population, in order to minimize the possibility of community transmission, all non-legal visits at FPC Pensacola are currently suspended. Inmates in the general population do have access to email and telephones for social calls twice a week. Heightened cleaning standards are in place, and inmates in the general population are issued multiple face masks and encouraged to wear them in common areas. There is currently no lockdown in place, and inmates have access to the library, recreation, and programming. Prisoners in the general population who exhibit symptoms of COVID-19 are immediately isolated and tested. Additionally, BOP guidance dictates that prisoners be tested even when they do not display symptoms if they have had contact with a staff member or inmate who has tested positive for the disease. The BOP’s website indicates that, to date, 17 tests have been performed and no inmates have tested positive for the disease. Five staff members have tested positive. Four have fully recovered and one is currently self-isolating."

Judge Brodrick to his credit he has docketed two constituents' letter protesting it. Sue Perry, handwritten, says "Enough is enough." Christopher White, on a computer, asks "Why Mr. Collins is granted a delay in his incarceration when other prisoners of lesser means and more medical risks are currently actually in prison?" Why indeed. Watch this site.

  On March 2, Collins pushed his surrender date back even further to April 21, with Judge Broderick "granting request that Collins Report date be extended and re-set to 2:00pm on April 21, 2020."

  On April 1, Collins asked for another extension, citing Coronavirus COVID-19, and at 9:13 am on April 2 he got it: ": MEMO ENDORSEMENT as to Christopher Collins (1) granting [184] LETTER MOTION addressed to Judge Vernon S. Broderick from Jonathan B. New dated April 1, 2020 re: Extended Self-Surrender Date. ENDORSEMENT: APPLICATION GRANTED. SO ORDERED. (Signed by Judge Vernon S. Broderick on 4/1/2020) (ap)."

 Here was the request agreed to: "on January 17, 2020, Mr. Collins appeared before Your Honor for sentencing pursuant to his plea of guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and one count of making a false statement. At sentencing Your Honor, in relevant part, sentenced Mr. Collins to concurrent sentences of 26 months imprisonment, recommended that Mr. Collins be designated to FPC Pensacola in Florida and set a Report Date of March 17, 2020. On January 31, 2020, a Judgment in a Criminal Case issued as to Mr. Collins, ECF No. 171, formalizing this sentence and recommending that BOP designate FPC Pensacola if possible. On February 28, 2020, Mr. Collins moved the Court, with the Government’s consent, to continue the Report Date to April 21, 2020, because Mr. Collins had not yet been processed into the BOP system, had not been designated to a facility and there was a concern that the designation would not be able to occur prior to March 17. The Court granted the motion to continue the Report Date to April 21, 2020. Since the filing of the last motion to continue Mr. Collins’ Report Date, the impact of the new strain of coronavirus which causes COVID-19 greatly worsened, prompting the World Health Organization, on March 11, 2020, to officially classify COVID-19 as a pandemic... we respectfully request that Mr. Collins’ Report Date be extended and re-set to 2:00 pm on June 23, 2020, for the reasons set forth below. We have conferred with counsel for the Government, which does not object to the relief requested herein."  And then? Inner City Press will stay on these cases.

  On January 24, in sentencing tippee Stephen Zarsky who was directly tipped by the ex-Congressman's son Cameron Collins to whom he gave five years probation, Judge Broderick gave only four years probation, no jail time. The sentencing, in nearly empty Courtroom 110 where phone use was not permitted, leading to a mere three tweet thread from the hallway, was replete with references to an undisclosed disease of Zarsky's that led him to communicate with people in the "wee hours."

   Zarsky's lawyer said "he is not a politician... He is a romantic poet, a songwriter, he has a guitar collection."  When at last it was Zarsky's own turn to speak, he told Judge Broderick he hopes the Judge hears his songs one day.

How about this one: Don't look for justice in Foley Square. OneCoin version here. Or these Periscope videos, I & II. More on Patreon here. We'll have more on and of this.

  As to Cameron Collins' five years probation, somewhat defensively Judge Broderick said that anyone questioning his sentence could consider the context.

  Inner City Press did its best to live tweet that sentencing, here. But to some, we are left with the message that for example a Bronxite who attempts to rob a bank without a weapon of any kind gets 151 months, and the affluent son of a Congressman who essentially steals $500,000 gets no jail time.

  Then again, Francis Lorenzo who bribed the United Nations then testified against co-defendant Ng Lap Seng got time served. More on Patreon here.

 Much of the debate back on January 17 concerned whether Chris Collins, when he told his son Cameron about the setback for Innate Immunotherapeutics, could or should have told him, "You can't trade on this."    

Another concerned whether Collins recklessly harmed his constituents by actively running for office when he knew or should have known he likely could not serve out the term.  

What made that issue complex is that a defendant has a right to proclaim his innocence and should not be punished for it. But to attack the opposing candidate?  

Collins said he did not want to return to Buffalo. Judge Broderick after imposing sentence urged him to do so.

 Watch this site - and the @InnerCityPress Twitter feed, podcast and Patreon site. In fact, more on this Chris Collins story on Patreon, here.

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