by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
SDNY COURTHOUSE, May 23 – Following the death of a one-year old baby by fentanyl, on September 19, 2023 the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York charged Grei Mendez and Carlisto Acevedo Brito.
On September 25, with no notice and Inner City Press initially the only person in the courtroom gallery, the third man was brought in: Renny Antonio Parra Paredes. Inner City Press live tweeted, thread:
Judge Wang: You are charged with conspiracy to distribute narcotics. AUSA: We seek detention, and they consent. Defense lawyer: Most of his family is out of town. We consent.
On January 23, Paredes' lawyer argued, and lost, before the assigned District Judge Jed S. Rakoff: "Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge Jed S. Rakoff: Oral Argument as to Felix Herrera Garcia, Grei Mendez, Carlisto Acevedo Brito, Renny Antonio Parra Paredes held on 1/23/2024. The trial date is adjourned to 6/10/2024 and time is excluded in the interest of justice, pursuant to Section 3161 of Title 18. Deft Paredes bail application is denied as a risk of flight and danger to the community. All deft's continued remanded."
On February 12, Inner City Press went to a possible change of counsel hearing on lead defendant Felix Herrera Garcia - but soon Judge Rakoff asked everyone but Herrera Garcia and his still counsel to leave the courtroom, "even my favorite reporter."
Once back in, Judge Rakoff said the problem had been fixed, for now, with a letter possible in two weeks. On fingerprints he noted decisions by Judge Pollack in his native Philadelphia, and the Spain bombing fingerprint snafu. A Daubert hearing on prints is possible.
On March 21, Grei Mendez was brought into the Magistrates Court to be arraigned on a superseding indictment. Inner City Press was there, thread
On May 22, Grei Mendez got a new lawyer - and had her trial severed: "ORDER as to (23-Cr-504-2) Grei Mendez. On May 22, 2024, the Court held a hearing to determine whether counsel for defendant Grei Mendez had a conflict of interest that required the appointment of new counsel. Upon hearing the nature of the conflict, the Court determined that new counsel needed to be appointed for Ms. Mendez. The Court accordingly relieved the Federal Defenders as counsel for Ms. Mendez and appointed that day's CJA counsel to represent Ms. Mendez moving forward. As a result of the change of counsel, the Court severed Ms. Mendez from the jury trial of her co-defendant set to proceed on June 10, 2024, and a new trial will be calendared in her case."
Back on May 17, it was docketed that one of the defendants now plans to plead guilty: "NOTICE OF HEARING as to Renny Antonio Parra Paredes. An in court change of plea is scheduled
More on Substack here
On April 11 another defendant was added in an S2 indictment: Jean Carlo Amparo Herrera. He was brought into the SDNY Magistrates Court, where Inner City Press was the only media. His lawyer argued that he wasn't charged as the others were, and that she hadn't seen a video the prosecutor mentioned. But he had driven a co-defendant to Pennsylvania after the death, and more. He was detained.
The case is US v. Herrera Garcia et al., 23-cr-504 (Rakoff)
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