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June 19, 2007
Federal Judge in eminent domain case in headlines again
Judge Nicholas Garaufis made headlines last week for dismissing the federal eminent domain case brought by 13 plaintiffs who are contesting the constitutionality of the taking of private property for Bruce Ratner's controversial Atlantic Yards plan. Garaufis dismissed the case on the merits and the plaintiffs have vowed to appeal.
Yesterday, Garaufis landed on the cover of the Daily News as the trial of mob boss Vincent ("Vinny Gorgeous") Basciano was set to get underway. According to yesterday's article:
Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis will preside this week over the retrial of Bonanno crime boss Vincent (Vinny Gorgeous) Basciano - even after the jailed gangster allegedly put him on a hit list.
"I certainly don't feel threatened or intimidated," the judge told Basciano's attorney Allan Brenner during jury selection last week.
Follow-up coverage:
NY Daily News, Gorgeous gets ugly with attorneys
NY Newsday, 'Vinny Gorgeous' retrial starts
Back in March, Garaufis also got some ink for sentencing Ronell Wilson to death. Wilson had been found guilty at trial for murdering two undercover detectives in a gun-purchase sting, and was the first person sentenced to death in a federal case in New York since the federal death penalty was reinstated in 1988.
Will the property owners under threat of Atlantic Yards be back in front of the increasingly renowned Judge Garaufis? Apparently, they will if they win their appeal in the Second Circuit, seeking to overturn the Judge's ruling that their case lacked merit. Stay tuned...
Posted by lumi at June 19, 2007 10:18 AM