by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
SDNY COURTHOUSE, Nov 22 – For days Inner City Press had heard from its sources there would be a "takedown" on February 6, each SDNY Magistrate Judge would handle seven to 10 defendants.
Arrests happen at 6 am. So at 5:55 am Inner City Press tweeted it, first to X subscribers with the spoiler alert: the expectation was that each of the current or former NYCHA employees would be released on bond the same day.
And then hours later at 9:39 am the prosecutors announced it. Media rushed around reporting it. Inner City Press had it first, and after discretely waiting, published it first. Then this thread of presentments, here
On September 16, NYCHA defendant Charles Starks moved to dismiss, noting that the indictment provided "almost no detail on... the timing" - and citing the Supreme Court's Snyder v. US decision.
On November 12, NYCHA defendant Hector Colon was moving toward trial to start on November 18. Inner City Press went to the final pre-trial conference, where discussion ranged from a Punjabi interpreter to voir dire.
On November 18 Inner City Pres was there, from the thread:
US v Hector Colon. Contractor witness with immunity agreement tells jury he bribed 20 to 25 NYCHA employees.
AUSA: Why did you pay? Witness ( through Punjabi interpreter) They demanded it or they wouldn't sign off on our work, the SOS, so we could get paid.
On November 21, after the jury sent out a note including that "we are having a lot of discord, some are more driven by bias + don't believe some items." The US Attorney's Office wanted to ask if anyone on the jury is refusing to deliberate based on the Court's instructions; the defense does not want to ask, at least not yet.
On November 22 Inner City Press was in the courtroom when Juror 10 was taken into the robing room to be questioned about having done his own research. Unclear, at least to the press and public, what was said. But a guilty verdict was returned: "HECTOR COLON was convicted today of bribery and extortion under color of official right for taking thousands of dollars from contractors in exchange for awarding those contractors no-bid contracts or approving payment on previously awarded contracts at NYCHA developments for approximately three years. The verdict followed a four-day trial before U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman."
Inner City Press will stay on these cases.
Watch this site.
This case is USA v. Colon, 1:24-cr-367 (Liman)
Watch this site - and these feeds: X and X for subscribers.
And Substack here
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