Mount Sinai, New York, CHRISTOPHER McPARTLAND Copyright 2023 Newsday. Without recordings of conversations, the trial hinged largely on the testimony of one witness: James Hickey, a former police commander who worked in Mr. Spotas inner circle. Former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota was sentenced to 5 years behind bars. Already a lame duck for foregoing a re-election bid, Spota announced his retirement just days after he was charged amid growing pressure from politicians and the public. /. Spota, 80, is now an inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut. "Because of their obstructive efforts, the federal investigation was unsuccessful and was closed approximately eight months later. Police officers who received subpoenas from the FBI were interrogated afterward by Burke's allies about whether they had talked, prosecutors said. The survival of local journalism depends on your support. Uli Seit for The New York Times. By clicking Sign up, you agree to our privacy policy. The judge said in a ruling last week that the imprisonment range both defendants were facing under federal guidelines was between 57 and 71 months in prison. When Mr. Cuffs son was caught with a gun, the district attorneys office threatened to upgrade the charges from a misdemeanor to a felony. Local law enforcement eyewitnesses had been frightened into silence, as they feared retaliation against themselves and their families from within the Suffolk County Police Department and the District Attorneys Office. Former Suffolk County DA Tom Spota was sentenced Tuesday following his 2019 conviction for helping cover for ex-police Chief James Burke. In a rage, Chief Burke kicked and punched him. As soon as Mr. Burke became police chief in early 2012, he demoted Mr. Cuff by four ranks and assigned him to guard a warehouse. Boeckmann, the prosecutor, said outside the courthouse that the long-term damage Spota and McPartland inflicted on the criminal justice system couldn't be overstated. A Long Island jury on Tuesday found former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota guilty of obstructing a federal probe into a police chief who bashed a handcuffed prisoner over stolen porn . He told jurors Spota grilled him on who he suspected had "flipped," or started cooperating with federal officials. Courtesy of Pixabay. Instead of serving the people of Suffolk County, these defendants brazenly abused their exceptional positions of power and public trust to protect their friends and hurt their enemies. Spota recommended a new federal task force and said that legislation was needed to "attack the owners and the distributors of these programs, who are reaping enormous profits. Lawyers for Spoto and McPartland, 55, had argued home confinement was a more appropriate sentence. "The verdict today confirms what I said on May 12, 2016 when I stood on the steps of the district attorney's office calling on him to resign that Tom Spota, along with Christopher McPartland, was running a criminal enterprise out of the district attorney's office," Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said in 2019. McPartland also addressed Azrack on Tuesday before hearing his sentence. The defense teams for Spota and McPartland had lobbied extensively for sentences of home confinement and community service for their clients. My family will forever be marked by my disgrace, Spota saidmoments before being sentenced. The jury determined Spota conspired with Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke and former anti-corruption bureau chief Christopher McPartland to pressure witnesses to not cooperate with an FBI investigation into the 2012 assault. "Ive also left them with a shattered legacy and the stain of being a convicted felon," the former district attorney said. The judge also sentenced the former DAs top aide and ex-chief of his anti-corruption unit, Christopher McPartland, to five years in prison for the cover-up, as well. Together, Mr. Spota, Mr. McPartland and Chief Burke controlled what amounted to a law-enforcement fiefdom in the eastern half of Long Island, prosecutors said. Age: 55 The thief took a duffel bag from the car that contained sex toys, a pornographic DVD and Viagra. You rely on us to stay informed, and we depend on you to make our work possible. Former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas J. Spota and Government ", In 2016, Bellone publicly called on Spota to step down with claims that Spota was "operating a criminal enterprise that must be stopped.". In 2019, a jury convicted Spota, of Mount Sinai, and McPartland, 55, of Northport, of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, witness tampering and acting as accessories to the deprivation of prisoner Christopher Loeb's civil rights. Prosecutors had argued the men deserved 8 years behind bars for doing "the exact opposite" of their jobs in the face of a scandal that eventually engulfed the county's law enforcement power structure. Their behavior was outrageous, and their sentences today prove as much. "These men were the highest ranking prosecutors in Suffolk County and they flagrantly disregarded the law and the sanctity of their public office to protect an equally high-ranking, lawless police officer," she added. They golfed together and drank together. They ruined lives and destroyed careers. Former Det. Burke pleaded guilty to civil rights violations and conspiracy to obstruct justice in February of 2016 and was sentenced to 46 months in prison. Anyone can read what you share. As certain key witnesses were then compelled to testify before the grand jury under a grant of immunity, the truth about Burke assaulting Loeb finally emerged. [18] Spota's sentencing was delayed multiple times but he was sentenced to 5 years in federal prison and a $100,000 fine on August 10, 2021.[5]. During a meeting that year, Mr. McPartland speculated about who the rat was. Have a question about Government Services? ", He added that at the time he called for the resignation, "Tom Spota's power was at its peak and their criminal enterprise was in full swing. That year in Nassau County, Democrats also were victorious in many positions. "Burke, Spota and McPartland used the power and influence of their official positions, and the threat of retaliatory arrest and prosecution, to keep anyone from cooperating with that investigation," federal officials said in the release. The verdict came after the jury sat for five weeks listening to evidence, including reports of secret meetings between Spota and McPartland, cell phone tower data, and phone records; Burke previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced, News 12 said. Mr. Spota, a lawyer for the police union at the time, defended Mr. Burke and negotiated a plea deal that saved his career. The chief barged into the police interrogation room where the man, handcuffed to the floor, called him a pervert. Loeb's three-year prison sentence was vacated after Burke pleaded guilty. Former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas J. Spota and Christopher McPartland, the former Chief of Investigations and Chief of the Government Corruption Bureau of the Suffolk County District Attorneys Office (SCDAO), were each sentenced today by United States District Judge Joan M. Azrack, to five years in prison. Former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota and a former top aide, Christopher McPartland, surrendered at separate federal prisons Friday, prison officials told Newsday. Testimony showed Hickey was hospitalized in 2015 after hallucinations brought on by stress and sleep deprivation, after a separate 2013 hospitalization for pancreatitis after excessive alcohol intake. Spota added that he felt deep anguish for the shame his conviction brought to his family. No other witness testified to receiving direct orders from Mr. Spota or Mr. McPartland to obstruct the investigation, defense lawyers argued. Film Extras: Interview with Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas J He described it as a coalition of five high-powered, corrupt insiders who were behind the cover-up and would take collective aim to discredit and punish their enemies. ", In 2016, Bellone publicly called on Spota to step down with claims that Spota was "operating a criminal enterprise that must be stopped. Assistant United States Attorneys Nicole Boeckmann, Lara Treinis Gatz, Justina L. Geraci and Michael R. Maffei are in charge of the prosecution. Prosecutors alleged that Spota and McPartland illegally intervened after the Dec. 14, 2012 beating. Ex-Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas J. Spota sentenced to 60 months in prison and $100K fine for obstructing a federal civil rights investigation. A lock ( Loeb had broken into Burkes official police vehicle and stolen his gun belt and ammunition, and a duffel bag containing cigars, sex toys, prescription Viagra and pornography. From December 2010, his office oversaw the investigation of numerous homicides in Suffolk County, believed to have been perpetrated by a single unidentified person, known as the Long Island serial killer, or LISK. Police officers who were supposed to investigate gangs and school shootings would be diverted to help their chief with petty vendettas and mundane tasks, like spying on his girlfriends or driving him to the airport, former officers testified. According to federal prosecutors, Spota, McPartland, Burke and other police officers met and spoke by phone to discuss how to conceal Burke's role in the assault on Loeb. "I hope it sends a clear message that no one is above the law and criminal conduct that betrays the public trust will be punished," the judge said of his sentence. The former official in Suffolk County was found guilty of conspiracy after a trial that exposed a culture of corruption. Uli Seit for The New. He also said Spota recently was given an "uncertain" medical prognosis but didn't provide further details. Machine, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas J. Spota sworn in, Suffolk County Board of Elections: 2009 Election Official Results, Testimony of Mr. Thomas Spota, Suffolk County District Attorney, September 9, 2003, "Prosecutor: Convicted killer may be tied to more NY slayings", "James Burke, Ex-Suffolk County Police Chief, Pleads Guilty", "Suffolk County DA Thomas Spota Indicted In 2012 Police Brutality Cover-up", "DA in New York is accused of obstructing probe into beating of suspect by former police chief", "Ex-Suffolk County DA Thomas Spota found guilty of protecting ex-chief who bashed porn thief", "Former Suffolk DA disbarred from practice of law due to conviction", Suffolk County District Attorney's office, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thomas_Spota&oldid=1126141669, Politicians from Suffolk County, New York, St. John's University School of Law alumni, All articles with bare URLs for citations, Articles with bare URLs for citations from March 2022, Articles with PDF format bare URLs for citations, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 7 December 2022, at 19:31. 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Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Spota and McPartland were successful in thwarting the investigation at first, until the case was reopened and witnesses were able to testify when granted immunity. I met with Joselo, the brother. Mr. McPartland helped concoct a cover story that Chief Burke had just popped his head in to the interrogation room. August 10, 2021 CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (AP) A former Long Island prosecutor was sentenced to 5 years in prison on Tuesday for helping cover up the police beating of a prisoner suspected of stealing sex toys and other items from a police chief's vehicle.
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