Joe Bruno the legendary longtime leader of the New York Senate Republicans stands accused of ” the theft of honest services, ” but the Feds never proved a crime at trial. New York’s political class is waiting with bated breath for a vedict.

Joe Bruno: Target of Political Hit Job

The Judge  in the Albany trial wanted to give the Jury an “Allen charge” – meaning a directive that they MUST reach a consensus when the have failed to do so. It gives juries the impression they cannot come back and announce they are deadlocked. It is a wicked pro-prosecution tool- after the first note requesting clarifications of the “reasonable doubt” standard- a true jump of the gun.

Supported for his job by Sen. Chuck Schumer, Sharpe has a son who is an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the same office and jurisdiction where Bruno is being prosecuted . Sharpe should have recused himself on that basis alone.

Sharpe finally issued the charge to the Jury that they should continue deliberations after the jury sent a note saying they cound not reach consensus. Courtroom observers believe four of twelve jurors want to acquit the long time Republican Leader.

Throughout the trial Sharpe was hostile ,short tempered and contemptuous ,chiding former Bill Clinton lawyer Abbe Lowell not to “make speeches” when he tried to address the jury. The judge over-ruled Bruno lawyers 56 times and sustained them twice while ruling for the Government 47 times and overruling them twice.

Sharpe even launched a personal attack at Bruno over what he said was a comment by the Senator, but the OFFICIAL RECORD by the Court stenographer records no such comment; Bruno was leaning over talking to his lawyer- a Constitutional right. To hear about the Judges inappropriate rant go here

This charade must stop. The government’s case is a patchwork that includes  testimony regarding conversations Bruno supposedly had with a dead Union president from a union thug brought from prison, who admits he  never met Bruno, and Bruno associates given immunity to distort and lie about the Senator. The U.S .Supreme court has three reviews of this ‘honest services ” law, which is a overreaching prosecutors wet dream.

The Bruno jury has made it clear to the judge that they are hopelessly hung. So Sharpe sends them home at 4:45 each weekday with weekends and the Holidays off, wearing them down to push them to a guilty verdict, while implying that they must reach verdict.

The Feds have no bribe, no inapproriate use of authority, no official act  by Bruno which benefited the Senator’s allowable outside clients.

I pray those who believe in justice on this jury not be steam-rolled by a prosecution and a hanging judge working together to take down a big fish.

Those citizens who want to contact Judge Sharpe and tell him you are watching and that his conduct is deplorable can do so at gsharpe@courts.state.ny.us . I am big on citizen input.

Bruno has been indicted under the controversial ” theft of honest services” law. The same law that Supreme Court Justice Anton Scalia says is unconstitutionally vague. Indeed, the US Supreme Court has taken not one but two “honest services cases” for review. The government has no evidence of bribes or improper pressure on government–required by the law–that Bruno took for his clients. Under New York Law, legislators are part-time  and are allowed to have outside income. Bruno , an non-lawyer with a business background, is a business consultant.

When the Government dropped hundreds of thousands of pages of new documents on Bruno’s defense team only days before trial Bruno’s lawyer asked Judge Gary Sharpe of the Northern District of New York for a mere two week delay. The motion was denied.

Indeed , in three weeks of trial Sharpe has overruled Bruno’s lawyer Abbe Lowell 49 times and sustained him twice while he has sustained the Government 36 times and overruled them twice.

But last week Sharpe showed why he is not fit to be a Federal Judge. After a particularly surprising ruling by the Judge, Bruno registered his shock facially and leaned over to speak to his lawyer. Sharpe went berserk and betrayed his animus towards the 81 year old Republican. “For once in your life you do not control something ….I do. If you ever do what you just did in the presence of the Jury again, which is question one of my rulings, I will take measures to make sure you never do that again.”

This arrogant Judge has one problem. Even though the New York Times headline says ” Judge in Bruno Corruption trial Chastises Him Over a Remark”-the court stenographer recorded no audible “remark” by Bruno! Sloppy reporting by Timesman Nick Confessore. How can there be a remark when the official record records none, thus Bruno conversation with his lawyer must have been inaudible.

Sharpe quickly dismissed a motion for a mistrial.

On top of this the Troy Record Reports that Judge Sharpe’s son is an assistant U S Attorney in the same office that is prosecuting Bruno. Sharpe should have had the integrity to recuse himself. Judge Sharpe is a disgrace to the Federal Bench caught up in what he thinks is his 15 minutes.

Citizens who want to contact Judge Sharpe and tell him to recuse himself in the name of fairness can e-mail him at gsharpe@courts.state.ny.us.