By Matthew Russell Lee, Periscope, Photos
SDNY COURTHOUSE, August 29 – A defendant with an Yale masters degree pled guilty to conspiracy to sell crystal methamphetamine and liquid GHB on March 29, 2019 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York courtroom of Judge Victor Marrero.
Inner City Press was the only media present and the plea colloquy was the normal until, first, the health questions were hit. Philip Weinstein the lawyer for defendant - who we left unnamed until checking, and now publish, Mark Mattek - turned and glared at Inner City Press, then asked to answer the question "off the record."
He said, "May I approach." Judge Marrero replied, quiet naturally, that then it would be on the record in front of the court reporter. Everything the lawyer said was audible, although we still withhold it from compassion. Weinstein returned to counsel's table and next up was reference to a cooperation agreement, did the defendant with his masters degree understand it. Yes.
There was a cursory allocution, the government saying the drugs and cash were found in Mattek's apartment which was on West 46th Street - and then a request that the transcript of the proceeding, which had been open, be sealed.
This seemed strange; Inner City Press in an abundance of caution or responsibility withheld identifying information until, without electronics in the courthouse, it was able to in-person ask about the rules. If it's open, it's open.
And so now, in August 2021, Inner City Press revisited the case. It was transferred to the Eastern District of Wisconsin; quietly, Mattek was given a time served sentence with a number of entries in the dockets listed as sealed.
We aim to have more on this.
The case in SDNY is, or was, US v. Mattek, 18-cr-161 (Marrero). Now in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, it's US v. Mattek, 21-cr-30...
***
Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron.
