The distribution, by county, of the number of public corruption prosecutions brought by Manhattan Federal prosecutors during the term of former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara revealed that Queens County was tied for second-highest, based on a calculation made by Progress Queens.
From Buffalo to Brooklyn to Manhattan to Queens, reports are indicating that political county committee officials are exerting greater influence over the State's court system.
In Buffalo, a judge pleaded guilty to accepting bribes from the lawyer and political operative G. Steven Pigeon in exchange for, amongst other things, providing beneficial rulings to Mr. Pigeon's clients in court cases, according to Federal charges filed in a related case, which were recounted in a report published by The New York Times. In each of Brooklyn and Manhattan, a judge was initially denied the endorsement of the respective Democratic Party county committee over reports that county committee officials were retaliating against judicial candidates over their judicial independence. And in Queens, the family of, and a law firm with political close ties to, U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-Queens) have reportedly been profiting and exerting influence over some of the courts. U.S. Rep. Crowley serves as the chair of the Queens Democratic County Committee. His office did not answer an interview request made by Progress Queens for this report.
Of these allegations of judicial influence or interference, investigators are only known to be probing and prosecuting allegations in Buffalo. In the three counties in New York City, allegations that political calculations are influencing the administration of the courts have so far not been reported to be leading to investigations. As reported by Progress Queens, the top Municipal prosecutors must run for office with the support of their respective political party county committee. Because of the supermajority of registered Democratic Party voters in New York City, the influence of or support from Democratic Party county committees largely determines the winner in political races for District Attorney. As a result of this political reliance, District Attorneys may be conflicted to investigate officials with ties to the political party county committee that provides to District Attorneys the requisite support to win elections. A potential conflict of interest between District Attorneys and significant political officials is reflected in a manual of guidelines applicable to Federal prosecutors, which acknowledges that Municipal prosecutors may have difficulty bringing at least one type of criminal charge against significant Government officials, which would pose special problems for Municipal prosecutors.
The potential for conflicts of interest in a District Attorney's office is not theoretical. In Buffalo, where reports of investigations of public corruption have been maturing into prosecution cases -- including against at least one former New York State Supreme Court justice -- former Erie County Assistant District Attorney Mark Sacha made the public accusation that then District Attorney Frank Sedita (D-Erie) was refusing to investigate allegations of corruption against Mr. Pigeon. Mr. Pigeon was the former chair of the Erie Democratic County Committee. After State prosecutors filed a second round of criminal charges against Mr. Pigeon, Mr. Sacha held a press conference to essentially say, "I told you so."