After Murder
Trial Israel Garcia Guilty and Got New
Lawyer Now Gets Life Plus 5 Years
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Patreon
SDNY COURTHOUSE,
June 7 – Jevaun Charles and
others were charged in a
narcotics conspiracy, with
guns.
On
August 2, 2021 U.S. District
Court for the Southern
District of New York Judge Jed
S. Rakoff held back to back
bond hearings. Inner City
Press covered them both.
First up
was Jason Gonzalez, with his
step father in the gallery.
The problem was his previous
conviction for attempted
murder. But, his lawyer
pointed out, after that he
worked for Door Dash.
Assistant US
Attorney Jacob Gutwillig
described a jail call to
Gonzalez, telling him to
collect the bread, which
Gutwillig offered meant money,
from street level dealers.
Gonzalez was detained.
Next up
was Israel Garcia. His lawyer
pointed out that he had been
the dean of a school, and had
traveled back to the SDNY by
bus after finding out he was
wanted on a warrant.
AUSA
Gutwillig countered that this
return took a month, that they
have a social media posting of
the dean with students
flashing a gang sign, with the
caption, When your students
find out you were the Big
Homie.
Gutwillig
raised another social media
post, of the dean in Panama
saying he wanted to be a
millionaire by the age of 30.
"Isn't
that the American Dream?"
Judge Rakoff remarked. The
dean's supporters and
seemingly his 9-year old
daughter in the gallery perked
up.
His
lawyer turned to the jail call
- it was the dean who had
called Gonzalez - and said it
might have been about raising
bail money. It was a winning
argument. Judge Rakoff said he
would release him to home
detention, on $500,000 bond.
In the gallery, applause. And
now this story.
On July 22 Judge
Rakoff held a requested bond
hearing on Jevaun Charles. It
emerged that Charles, detained
in Essex, has not been
vaccinated.
Judge
Rakoff mused whether he should
consider this, under the Bail
Reform Act, as a danger to the
community - or if getting
vaccinated in a week could be
a condition of release. As it
was it was academic - Charles
was not released.
Jump cut to
February 2023. With
co-defendant Israel Garcia
facing a March trial date, on
February 16 his indicted was
superseded to include the
murder of Alphonso McClinton
a/k/a Joey by Morris Avenue
and 182nd Street in The Bronx,
and witness tampering about
it.
The AUSA
on February 17, with Inner
City Press in the courtroom,
told Judge Rakoff they've
asked Main Justice about the
death penalty, and should know
by March. The trial was pushed
back to July 10 (Judge Rakoff
said he and his wife have
entered a ballroom dancing
competition in Rome in early
August, given rise to
good-natured - or envious -
laughter from all sides).
A week before
trial set for July 10, counsel
for Israel Garcia filed a
lengthy request to charge -
and opposition, including a
screen shot of the publication
date of "Talkin Hot."
At the final
pre-trial conference on July
7, Judge Rakoff excluded a rap
video. Then it emerged that
the prosecutors aim to get in
a second video, on which
Garcia raps. Judge Rakoff said
he's inclined to exclude that
too, on July 10, which would
make a defense rap expert
moot.
The prosecutors
made a record that Garcia is
convicted faces life
imprisonment - mandatory.
Judge Rakoff said 83% of
Federal judges oppose
mandatory minimums, adding
that they impose a trial
penalty. But, he said, he
would be required to impose
the law of the land. Inner
City Press is covering the
case.
On July 10 the
jury was picked and the trial
began. The US played audio of
911 calls of man shot on 182nd
Street and Morris Avenue, and
put a NYPD patrolperson of the
time on the stand.
On July 12, with
a cooperator on the stand
saying he didn't remember
saying the shooter wore blue
New Balance, the court room
was sealed, then sidebars.
Thread:
OK - back in
murder trial of US v Israel
Garcia, cooperator Parker in
Essex Couny [NJ] jail yellow
on the stand undrr cross
examination, next to board
with 6 mugshots in a pyramid.
Defense lawyer:
You told police the shooter
had on blue New Balance
sneakers? [They play him
audio, ostensibly of himself
saying it.]
Defense lawyer:
Were you high? Look at this
transcript. You told the
government the gun did not
have a cylinder?
AUSA:
Objection!
Courtroom has
been sealed. Inner City Press
was out in hallway - now once
back in, a sidebar with white
noise. What occurred?
On July 13, Inner
City Press was told it could
not enter Courtroom 14B but
rather an overflow courtroom
on the 24th floor. There staff
arranged a feed of audio, with
the camera pointed at the
ceiling. This meant not being
able to see not only the
witness' face, but also the
exhibits, which are supposed
to be public.
On July 14, a
witness in a ski or skull cap
identified himself in NYPD
videos of crack purchases on
Morris and 184, and another
associated named Kenny with a
torquoise skull cap and I-84
tattoo which, the witness
said, stood for the 184 in 184
Street. The sale of 18 dimes
was split between two dealers.
The stage was and is being
set.
On July 17, the
US put on the stand a witness
about what Garcia said in the
MDC - the witness would have
been deported to Jamaica but
for his cooperation agreement.
He was asked about the
deferral of action, presented
as a stronger incentive for
testimony even than a 5K1
letter.
On July 19, after
the jury asked for the
testimony of cooperators - and
delayed by another proceeding
for which the courtroom was
sealed - the jury returned
with all guilty verdicts on
Garcia, including murder. A
woman in the gallery cried
out; another left the room.
Rule 29 and 33 motions were
denied. Judge Rakoff said
given the witness tampering
and other issues in the case,
no one in the courtroom could
talk to the jurors. Counsel,
he later said, could request
permission by written motion.
And the media? Sentencing was
set for October 20 at 9:30 am.
Then in August,
Israel Garcia wrote to Judge
Rakoff complaining about he
was represented - and on
August 21 the prosecutors
wrote to request a hearing on
the letter, and on "the
defendant's purported bases
for the appointment of new
counsel."
On August 22,
Judge Rakoff set it for August
28: "NOTICE OF HEARING as to
Israel Garcia. A status
conference will be heard
Monday, August 28, 2023 at
4:30 PM in courtroom 14B of
the Daniel Patrick Moynihan
Courthouse, 500 Pearl Street,
New York City, New York.
(Status Conference set for
8/28/2023."
Inner City Press
went on August 28. At first
Judge Rakoff said he would not
appoint new counsel, saying
that a life sentence is
mandatory. (He added that he
think that's stupid). Garcia
asked if he thinks the system
system is fair. When Judge
Rakoff said, Yes, Garcia said,
That's not what you wrote in
your book." Judge Rakoff said
he was focused on false guilty
pleas, and Garcia had
withdrawn his plea. In any
event, the August 29 CJA duty
attorney got the case.
On December 11,
Garcia's new lawyer filed a
sentencing submission against
the mandatory life sentence,
arguing that "at age 19, Mr.
Garcia's brain was also not
fully developed."
Jump cut to May
28, when Garcia's lawyer asked
that he remain in MDC Brooklyn
pending his anticipated appeal
- like Sam Bankman-Fried
requested and got granted, but
only after he was en route to
BOP's transit facility in
Oklahoma... "Sentencing Letter
by Israel Garcia addressed to
Judge Jed S. Rakoff dated May
28, 2024 re: requesting the
Court recommend Mr. Garcia
remain at the MDC pending the
filing of briefs in his
anticipated appeal."
On June 7, Garcia
got life plus five years:
"ISRAEL GARCIA, a/k/a “Shorty
Rock,” the former leader of
the Get Money Gunnaz set of
the Young Gunnaz street gang
(the “GMG YGz”), was sentenced
to life plus five years in
prison for the October 11,
2010, murder of Alfonso “Joey”
McClinton. GARCIA shot
and killed McClinton on a
residential street in the
Bronx, New York, as part of a
dispute over narcotics
trafficking territory."
Watch this site.
The overall case
is US v. Charles, et al.,
21-cr-412 (Rakoff)
***
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.
Feedback:
Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
SDNY Press Room 480, front cubicle
500 Pearl Street, NY NY 10007 USA
Mail: Box 20047, Dag
Hammarskjold Station NY NY 10017
Reporter's mobile (and weekends):
718-716-3540
Other, earlier Inner City Press are
listed here,
and some are available in the ProQuest
service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.
Copyright 2006-2021 Inner City
Press, Inc. To request reprint or other
permission, e-contact Editorial [at]
innercitypress.com
|