FBI: NYS Assembly Speaker Jew Vermin Sheldon Silver Arrested On Corruption Charges

https://nypost.com/2018/04/30/silvers-ex-doctor-pal-dishes-on-first-time-meeting-him/

Silver’s ex-doctor pal dishes on first time meeting him
By Kaja Whitehouse
April 30, 2018 | 8:31pm

A once-prominent cancer doctor took the witness stand at Sheldon Silver’s corruption retrial Monday, telling jurors he was lured into a corrupt scheme by the former head of the state Assembly within days of meeting him in 2003.

Dr. Robert Taub said he learned that Silver wanted help becoming a “rainmaker” at his mesothelioma-focused law firm less than a week after being introduced to the Manhattan Democrat through a mutual friend, Daniel Chill, a lawyer with Albany connections.

“The phrase he [Chill] used was ‘Shelly wants cases,’” Taub said of Silver’s cryptic message.

Then a Columbia University doctor who specialized in the rare form of cancer that stems from exposure to asbestos, said he understood Silver’s message to mean that he wanted to be a “rainmaker” at Weitz & Luxenberg, which was getting rich suing on behalf of mesothelioma victims.

At the time, Silver was “of counsel” at Weitz & Luxenberg and so stood to earn a healthy cut of the money from such lawsuits.

“I thought it would profit him, sure” Taub told the Manhattan federal jury.

Taub, 82, was on the stand for less than an hour of the first day of Silver’s retrial.

On Tuesday, the doctor is expected to testify that Silver gave him $500,000 in state grants and other benefits in exchange for his patient referrals, which helped earned Silver a cool $3 million over the years.

Silver, 74, is being tried a second time over allegations that he sold his office in exchange for bribes from Taub and the two real estate firms.

His 2015 conviction was overturned on appeal based on a Supreme Court ruling reversing the bribery conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell. That ruling made it no longer illegal for a politician to line his or her pockets off people seeking favors unless the politician does something “official” in exchange for gifts, such as passing legislation.

In their opening remarks Monday, prosecutors said they will prove Silver engaged in “a decade of corruption and lies” through two agreements.

“Selling your office for $3 million is corruption plain and simple. It’s illegal,” Assistant US Attorney Damian Williams told the jury.

“He abused his power for personal gain,” and then he lied about it, Williams said.

But defense lawyers argued that Silver did nothing wrong according to the letter law — even if his actions were “distasteful.”

“Distasteful is not criminal. A conflict of interest is not a criminal offense,” defense lawyer Michael Feldberg told a Manhattan federal jury in opening statements at Silver’s corruption retrial Monday.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/05/03/sheldon-silver-pressured-charity-head-to-give-friends-son-job-witness/

Sheldon Silver pressured charity head to give friend’s son job: witness
By Kaja Whitehouse
May 3, 2018 | 9:48pm | Updated

Two months after directing $2 million in state funds to a charitable group, Sheldon Silver pressed the head of that organization to give a job to the son of a doctor who was enriching the then-Assembly speaker through medical referrals, a witness testified Thursday.

David Mandel, the head of OHEL Children’s Home and Family Services, told a Manhattan federal jury Thursday that Silver, 74, reached out to him twice seeking a job for Dr. Robert Taub’s son, who was hired in volunteer outreach for a $30,000-plus salary.

Silver first reached out in May 2012, two months after the powerful pol directed $2 million in taxpayer money to OHEL for a summer camp, Mandel said. After Silver tried again a month later, Mandel told his staff to find a position for Taub’s son, Jonathan, emails showed. Silver is on retrial in Manhattan federal court on kickback charges.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/05/07/incen...-call-out-silver-for-shady-real-estate-deals/

‘Incensed’ developers were too scared to call out Silver for shady real estate deals
By Kaja Whitehouse
May 7, 2018 | 7:36pm

Two Big Apple real-estate developers were irate when they discovered Sheldon Silver was secretly getting rich off them — but not enough to send the powerful Albany politician packing, witnesses testified Monday.

(((Steve Witkoff))), founder and CEO of the Witkoff Group, took the witness stand at Silver’s corruption retrial and told jurors he was “incensed” to learn that the tax lawyer Silver asked him to hire had been splitting fees with the then-Speaker of the state Assembly.

“It seemed unseemly,” Witkoff said of Silver’s fee arrangement with real estate tax lawyer Jay Arthur Goldberg. “Mr. Silver was an elected official and I wasn’t sure what the legality or ethical issues were.”

Similarly, executives at real estate giant Glenwood Management — including late owner (((Leonard Litwin))) — were up in arms to hear about Silver’s bizarre deal with Goldberg, an executive said.

“He was upset and angry,” Glenwood lawyer Richard Runes said of Litwin’s reaction. “He said, ‘I did not agree to pay Sheldon Silver anything.’”

Still, neither the Witkoff Group nor Glenwood dared give Silver’s tax lawyer the boot.

“Mr. Silver was the speaker [of the Assembly] and he was extremely powerful,” Runes told the jury. “[He was] not somebody you want to make not like you.”

Witkoff said he didn’t fire Goldberg because the lawyer “was in the middle of proceedings.” But earlier, he also referenced Silver’s power to explain why he hired Goldberg in the first place.

“I didn’t want to do anything that might alienate Mr. Silver,” Witkoff said.

Silver, 74, is on trial for the second time in three years on charges that he sold his office as one of the three most powerful politicians in the state — along with the Senate majority leader and governor — in exchange for $4 million in illegal kickbacks. Roughly $700,000 of the $4 million in kickbacks came from Silver’s arrangement with law firm Goldberg & Iryami, which gave Silver a cut of any earnings it made off real estate work he referred to them.

Witkoff said he learned that Silver was on the take in 2014 when Goldberg reached out said the feds were investigating their fee arrangement.

Glenwood’s executive learned about it in 2011 — thanks to a call by lobbyist Brian Meara.

Earlier Monday, Meara told the jury that he was “walking on the street in Palm Beach, Florida” in late December 2011 when Silver, who he has known since 1974, broke the news to him about how he was making money off Glenwood — one of Meara’s clients.

Meara said he was “surprised and concerned” about what Silver said and immediately called Glenwood.

Meara, who was once such close friends with the lawmaker he once dined at his house every week, mouthed “good luck” to his old pal as he left the courtroom Monday.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/05/08/sheldon-silver-said-kickbacks-were-legal-friend/

Sheldon Silver said ‘kickbacks’ were legal: friend
By Jennifer Bain and Kaja Whitehouse
May 8, 2018 | 9:33pm | Updated

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Jay Arthur Goldberg (left) and Sheldon Silver
Gregory P. Mango/Natan Dvir


A childhood friend of Sheldon Silver testified on Tuesday in the former Assembly speaker’s corruption retrial about becoming ensnared in a fee-sharing arrangement with the once-powerful politician.

Speaking under immunity, lawyer (((Jay Arthur Goldberg))) told a Manhattan federal jury that he was “delighted” when Silver first began sending him business from Glenwood Management, a large real-estate company.

Goldberg immediately asked if it was Ok to take referral business from the Lower East Side Democrat, which resulted in Goldberg sharing the fees he earned doing Glenwood’s tax work with Silver.

“I said, ‘Is this all right, Shelly?’ ” Goldberg asked.

“Of course,” he said Silver responded. “I’m a lawyer.”

Goldberg, who has known Silver for 65 years, said he had previously paid referral fees to lawyers who sent business his way, but asked Silver if it was legal in this case because of the pol’s status as speaker.

“I’ve given referral fees, but never to the speaker. I wanted to know. I relied on him because I knew him to be an honorable man,” Goldberg said.

Roughly $700,000 of the alleged $4 million in illegal kickbacks Silver is charged with receiving came from his arrangement with Goldberg, who gave Silver a cut of any earnings Goldberg’s firm made from two real-estate companies referred to Goldberg by Silver.

The companies, the Witkoff Group and Glenwood Management, also lobbied Silver over their business interests, including legislation.

Silver, 74, is on trial for the second time in three years on charges that he sold the influence of his office in exchange for the kickbacks.

His 2015 conviction was US overturned because of a Supreme Court ruling reversing the bribery conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell.

The government is expected to rest its case Wednesday.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/05/11/sheldon-silver-guilty-in-multimillion-dollar-corruption-case/

Sheldon Silver guilty in multimillion dollar corruption case
By Kaja Whitehouse
May 11, 2018 | 5:04pm | Updated

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Sheldon Silver
Richard Harbus


The ex-speaker of the New York state Assembly Sheldon Silver was found guilty on Friday of selling his office for $4 million in kickbacks — affirming a 2015 conviction on the same charges that had been overturned on appeal.

A jury of seven women and five men found Silver, 74, guilty of all seven counts against him, including two counts of honest services mail fraud and money laundering. :D

He faces as much as 130 years in prison when sentenced on July 13.

Silver showed no emotion as the jury read the verdict to the judge.

“Obviously I am disappointed,” the Lower East Side Democrat said outside of court, adding that he will appeal the verdict.

The verdict is a crushing blow to Silver, who was once one of the three most powerful men in New York along with the governor and Senate majority leader.

In 2015 he was sentenced to 12 years in prison, which his lawyers argued was a death sentence for the septuagenarian, who was fighting prostate cancer at the time.

Silver was saved from prison after a federal appeals court ruled that errors in the judge’s jury instructions warranted a new trial.

The jury overseeing the retrial reached their verdict after slightly more than one day of deliberation following a week-and-a-half-long trial that included 26 witnesses and dozens of exhibits.

One jury said “yes” between tears when asked if the jury convicted because the government had a strong case. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I feel very, very sorry.”

Silver was convicted of two schemes that earned him a whopping $4 million in kickbacks over a decade, plus $1 million in profits on the illegal gains.

The first scheme involved favors for a prominent cancer doctor who sent him lucrative referrals of cancer patients looking to sue asbestos companies. The second scheme involved two real estate companies that sent their tax business to a lawyer who then shared his fees with Silver.

Witnesses in the first scheme included the cancer doctor, Robert Taub, who testified that he sent Silver his valuable mesothelioma patients because he wanted the powerful politician to start supporting his research into the rare form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

Silver gave Taub $500,000 in taxpayer money to support his research, as well as help finding jobs for Taub’s adult children.

Prosecutors argued that Silver knew what he was doing was wrong because when Taub called him in 2014 to tell him the feds were poking around, Silver responded: “Did you tell them anything.”

“‘Did you tell them anything?’ That’s what Silver cared about — making sure Dr. Taub, his golden goose, kept his mouth shut,” prosecutor Tatiana Martins said on closing arguments.

“Sheldon Silver had abused his office for profit and he knew it,” she said.

Witnesses in the real estate scheme included Silver’s childhood friend Jay Arthur Goldberg, who testified that he split fees he received from two real estate developers with the powerful politician because Silver sent them his way.

Goldberg, who grew up with Silver on the Lower East Side, said his childhood pal assured him their arrangement was aboveboard.

“I said, ‘Is this all right, Shelly?’” Goldberg told the jury.

“Of course,” he said Silver responded. “I’m a lawyer.”

The companies, the Witkoff Group and Glenwood Management, also lobbied Silver over their business interests, including legislation.

Steven Witkoff, founder of real estate firm the Witkoff Group, testified that he didn’t know of Silver’s “unseemly” arrangement with Goldberg until 2015 when Goldberg broke the news to him. :rolleyes:

An executive of Glenwood testified that his firm also didn’t know Silver was getting a cut of fees they paid Goldberg until 2011, when a lobbyist pal of Silver’s broke the news.

That prompted Glenwood to demand Silver sign what prosecutors dubbed a “secret side letter” memorializing their arrangement.

“While he was negotiating the rent laws, Sheldon Silver was secretly on retainer to that developer,” prosecutor Martins told the jury.

“Even if there was no other evidence in the real estate scheme — this secret retainer alone tells you that Sheldon Silver is guilty.”
 
https://nypost.com/2018/05/12/sheldon-silver-was-broken-man-at-shabbat-services-after-conviction/

Sheldon Silver was ‘broken man’ at Shabbat services after conviction
By Melissa Klein
May 12, 2018 | 6:23pm | Updated

Sabbath services at the Lower East Side’s Bialystoker Synagogue felt funereal Saturday as its star congregant — disgraced ex-Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver — fell from grace, again.

The 74-year-old, convicted Friday for the second time for selling his office for $4 million in kickbacks, showed up as usual for the 7 a.m. service at the historic shul.

But where he was once treated as a celebrity and bestowed with honors, his fellow worshippers gave him a wide berth and the mood was somber “as if someone had died,” one observer said.

There was no special prayer of healing as both the rabbi and the rabbi’s assistant offered after the Democratic leader’s 2015 arrest — an accommodation the politician declined at the time.

And Silver was not called upon to read a blessing over the Torah, which is considered an honor.

Now facing up to 130 years in prison after Friday’s guilty verdict in federal court, he sat largely alone in a corner of the synagogue’s basement prayer space.

“The whole entire time he was just sunken into his prayer book. He seemed like a broken man,” the observer said.

Congregants seemed to walk on egg shells around him, offering a traditional “Good shabbos” greeting, but then quickly moving on.

He joined the 20 or so worshippers in attendance for the kiddish meal after the service, sitting together at one long table.

A congregant discussed the day’s Torah portion saying that God would not cast out a member of the community “so we too shouldn’t cast anyone out,” according to the observer.

But the words were cold comfort to Silver who merely nibbled on the warmed over meal of potato and noodle kugels, herring and cholent, a traditional stew. Small glasses were set out for a drink of schnapps.

After the meal, Silver picked up a prayer book again and headed to sit back down in the shul alone.

Sentencing for Silver, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2016, is scheduled for July 13 and he was allowed to remain out on bail.

He said outside the courthouse Friday that he was “disappointed” and would pursue an appeal. “I am very confident the judicial process will play out in my favor,” he said.

But the enormity of the situation seemed to weigh heavily on Silver Saturday.

“He seemed worried and sick,” the observer said.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/05/25/silver-looks-to-go-another-round-with-feds-over-corruption-case/

Silver looks to go another round with feds over corruption case
By Kaja Whitehouse
May 25, 2018 | 7:18pm

Disgraced politician Sheldon Silver is itching to go a third round in his corruption battle with the feds.

The ex-speaker of the New York state Assembly filed a memo Friday requesting an acquittal or a new trial after being convicted of selling his office for $4 million in kickbacks.

Silver was convicted May 11 by a Manhattan federal jury following a week-and-a-half long trial. The judgment affirmed his 2015 corruption conviction that had been tossed because the jury instructions were flawed.

In their memo Friday, Silvers’ lawyers claimed that the “weight of the evidence” was in Silver’s favor and that “no properly instructed, rational jury could have found him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Silver faces as much as 130 years when he is sentenced Sept. 30.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/07/23/sheldon-silver-doesnt-want-to-die-in-prison/

Sheldon Silver doesn’t want to die in prison
By Kaja Whitehouse
July 23, 2018 | 5:29pm

​Convicted former state Assembly ​Speaker ​Sheldon Silver is begging a federal judge for “mercy” — saying he hopes he doesn’t die in prison when he is sentenced ​later ​this week. :rolleyes:

“I worry that my wife will be destitute. I worry about her trying to visit me while continuing to be a full-time helper for her 93-year-old mother. I worry about my own age and health. I pray I will not die in prison,” Silver, 74, wrote in a letter to Manhattan federal Judge Valerie Caproni ahead of his July 27th sentencing. :pity:

“I beg for your mercy so that I can somehow go out into the world again to atone to everyone ​​I have hurt,” he told the judge, referring to a request by his lawyer to sentence Silver to a term of public service.

Silver was once one of the most powerful men in NY — along with disgraced Senate leader Dean Skelos and Gov. Cuomo — before he was convicted of pocketing more than $4 million in kickbacks, plus $1 million in illicit profits, through two schemes, including one that directed $500,000 in state grants to a cancer doctor who was sending him lucrative patient referrals.

His first conviction, in 2015, was overturned on appeal amid questions about the validity of the jury instructions.

He has served no prison time as a result.

Despite the request for leniency, Silver continues to assert that what he did was not a crime as he appeals the verdict, according to his lawyer, Michael Feldberg.

“Mr. Silver maintains that his conduct, while far from exemplary, did not cross the line of criminality,” Feldberg wrote to the judge. “And he has a constitutional right to seek to vindicate that view on appeal.”

In a sentencing memo filed Friday, prosecutors didn’t specify how much time the Lower East Side Democrat should serve except to say that it should be longer than any NY legislator ever convicted of corruption.

The current record-holder is ex-Assemblyman William Boyland Jr., who was sentenced to 14 years in 2015.

“The evidence at trial revealed, once again, that Silver repeatedly corrupted the great power of his office for personal profit and caused incalculable damage to the public trust,” the feds said.

Judge Caproni previously sentenced Silver to 12 years in prison after his lawyers argued prison would be a death sentence for the septuagenarian, who was fighting prostate cancer at the time.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/07/27/sheldon-silver-sentenced-to-7-years-in-prison-for-corruption/

Sheldon Silver sentenced to 7 years in prison for corruption
By Kaja Whitehouse
July 27, 2018 | 3:16pm | Updated

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Sheldon Silver


(((Sheldon Silver))), the disgraced ex-speaker of the New York state Assembly, was sentenced to seven years in prison — less than the 12 years he was sentenced to previously. :mad:

The judge cited the 74-year-old Silver’s advanced age and the substantial monetary penalties she plans to levy, including a $1.75 million fine, in the lower sentence. :rolleyes:

Silver was convicted in May — for a second time — of selling his office for $4 million in kickbacks, plus $1 million in profits, tied to two schemes.

Before his arrest in 2015, Silver was one of the most powerful men in Albany — along with Gov. Andrew Cuomo and former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos.

At his 2016 sentencing, Judge Valerie Caproni — who sentenced him again this time around — ordered him to serve 12 years in prison and to forfeit nearly $5.2 in ill-gotten gains and another $1.75 million in fines.

But Silver never served a day in prison :mad: because his 2015 conviction was overturned on appeal amid questions about the validity of the jury instructions, which were raised after the US Supreme Court narrowed the definition of bribery.

Silver’s lawyer (((Michael Feldberg))) has said he plans to appeal the second verdict as well, saying the feds once again failed to prove that Silver promised anything in return for the lucrative referrals he received. :rolleyes:

The Lower East Side Democrat is the fourth public official with ties to Albany to be convicted in the Manhattan federal courthouse since March.

Others include ex-Cuomo aide Joe Percoco, Skelos, and Alain Kaloyeros, Cuomo’s point man for his “Buffalo Billion” program to revitalize upstate New York.

During Friday’s sentencing, Caproni blasted Albany’s culture of corruption, noting that recent months have all “touched, directly and indirectly, the ‘three men in a room'” — the derisive term used to describe the governor and top leaders of the Senate and Assembly.

“This has to stop,” she said. “New York state has to get its act together and do something institutionally to stop corruption.”

Still, she commended Silver for apologizing for his conduct this time around :rolleyes:, which he did not do in 2016.

“That was a wise decision on Mr. Silver’s part,” she said. “Mr. Silver’s conduct clearly caused discernible harm.”

She also remarked on signs of wear and tear.

“I feel like visually he’s aged more than the three years that have gone by chronologically,” she said.

Silver also spoke at the sentencing, saying that he is “extremely, extremely remorseful” for having “brought out a great deal of distrust in NY’s government.”

“I fear that I will continue to be ridiculed and disdained,” he said. :pity:
 
https://nypost.com/2018/07/26/sheldon-silver-hopes-to-keep-some-kickback-money-stay-out-of-jail/

Silver hopes to keep some kickback money, stay out of jail
By Kaja Whitehouse
July 26, 2018 | 11:03pm | Updated

When Sheldon Silver is sentenced Friday, he will ask to keep some of the $4 million in kickbacks he has been found guilty of pocketing :rolleyes: — while also begging for his freedom, court papers show.

Lawyers for the disgraced former Assembly speaker say they intend to dispute some of the bribes Silver was convicted of raking in.

Specifically, they plan to contest some of the money Silver received via asbestos-cancer doctor Robert Taub, who testified at trial that he sent Silver’s law firm, Weitz & Luxenberg lucrative-patient referrals in exchange for $500,000 in state-funded research grants, among other perks.

Silver’s lawyer, (((Michael Feldberg))), says the feds failed to provide the “intake forms” needed to link 19 of the 49 patients to Taub. :rolleyes:

The feds will argue they have provided other evidence to link the 19 patients to Taub, including hospital records and records showing Silver earned $3 million off all of the 49 mesothelioma patients who were also patients of Taub.

“The court need not and should not accept the defendant’s fanciful view, which neither accords with the evidence nor accords with common sense,” the feds wrote in court papers.

Feldberg said he also will contest the feds’ evidence tied to the nearly $1 million in profits Silver made on his dirty money.

Silver, 74, faces as much as 27 years in prison when he is sentenced Friday.

He has begged for mercy in court papers, saying he doesn’t want to die in jail.

Prosecutors have not said how much time they think he should serve, except to say that he should be sent away for longer than any state legislator ever convicted of corruption.

The current record-holder is ex-Assemblyman William Boyland Jr., who was sentenced to 14 years in 2015.

At Silver’s first sentencing in 2016, the judge ordered him to serve 12 years in prison and to forfeit nearly $5.2 in ill-gotten gains and pay up another $1.75 million in fines.

Silver’s first conviction, in 2015, was overturned on appeal amid questions about the validity of the jury instructions.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/07/27/sheldon-silver-gets-to-remain-free-on-bail-pending-appeal/

Sheldon Silver gets to remain free on bail pending appeal
By Kaja Whitehouse
July 27, 2018 | 10:16pm

Sheldon Silver got a nice, five-year discount at his corruption resentencing on Friday when a federal judge ordered he spend just seven years in prison for bribe-taking — but the disgraced former state Assembly speaker still didn’t have to turn himself in. :mad:

Instead, Silver, 74, stays loose pending appeal :mad:, free on the same $200,000 bail that he posted when he was first arrested in January 2015 for pocketing nearly $4  million in payola from a Columbia University cancer researcher and two real-estate developers.

“I personally believe Mr. Silver knows in his heart of hearts that what he did was both venal and criminal,” Manhattan federal Judge Valerie Caproni told him. “That is why he will spend much of his golden years in prison.”

But to date Silver has yet to spend a night in custody :mad:, remaining free just as he had during his first trial and conviction and his first sentencing and then his successful 2017 appeal and May retrial and conviction.

“I’m getting in a car. That’s how I feel today,” a stooped but stone-faced Silver — for two decades one of New York’s most powerful politicians — growled to the press as he left court.

Caproni, who presided over the Lower East Side Democrat’s first trial and also his retrial, said she gave him five years less prison this time out of pity.

“I feel like, visually, he’s aged more than the three years that have gone by chronologically,” she said.

Caproni also credited the steep $1.75 million fine she imposed.

It’s the same fine as at his last sentencing, but this time Silver must start paying up in a big way, despite his plans to appeal.

A $1.2 million chunk of the fine is due Sept. 21, with the remainder then due in installments of $5,846 a month.

Silver additionally faces the potential forfeiture of nearly $5.2 million in pocketed bribes and profit, the same amount she ordered — but never fully imposed — when she first sentenced him two years ago.

It didn’t hurt that the disgraced politician has now begged for mercy, something he didn’t do before sentencing two years ago.

In a letter to the judge last week, Silver kvetched, “I pray I will not die in prison.”

And in court Friday, Silver told the judge he fears missing the “life cycle events” of his kids and grandkids.

“The last three years have been enormously difficult for me,” he said.

“The events that are outlined in this trial have brought out a great deal of distrust in New York’s government and I am extremely, extremely remorseful for that,” he added.

“That was a wise decision on Mr. Silver’s part,” Caproni said of his contrition.

The judge said she’ll decide a final forfeiture amount after both sides submit paper arguments in the next few weeks.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/09/17/sheldon-silver-is-going-straight-to-jail/

Sheldon Silver is going straight to jail
By Kaja Whitehouse
September 17, 2018 | 5:31pm | Updated

It’ll be “Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200” for Sheldon Silver, as a judge told the convicted former Assembly speaker he’s going straight to jail next month. :D

Manhattan federal Judge Valerie Caproni rejected Silver’s request for bail pending appeal — leaving the 74-year-old fallen New York powerbroker just a few more weeks to prepare for his seven-year sentence for corruption.

Caproni said Silver cannot delay his prison sentence any longer because his case for appeal is weak and unlikely to succeed.

His surrender date is Oct. 5.

“The true purpose of Silver’s appeal is simply to postpone his day of reckoning,” Caproni said in a court filing Monday.

Silver was convicted in May — for a second time — of selling his office for $4 million in kickbacks, plus $1 million in profits, tied to two schemes.

His 2015 corruption trial also resulted in a guilty verdict on all counts — but he never served a day in prison because the conviction was overturned on appeal amid questions about the validity of the jury instructions. Silver’s appeal, in that case, was directly the result of a Supreme Court ruling in 2016 narrowing the definition of bribery.

The judge did give Silver a break on a $1.75 million financial penalty, however. Rather than demand he pay $1.2 million of it by a set Sept. 21 deadline, the judge said he can first pay $750,000 and then pay the remaining $1 million in monthly installments starting on Nov. 1.

Before his arrest in 2015, Silver was one of the most powerful men in Albany — along with Gov. Andrew Cuomo and former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/09/25/sheldon-silver-gets-to-stay-out-of-jail-for-a-bit-longer/

Sheldon Silver gets to stay out of jail for a bit longer
By Kaja Whitehouse
September 25, 2018 | 11:17am | Updated

New York state’s disgraced former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver just got another get-out-of-jail-free card — thanks to a new appeals court ruling.

In the latest twist in Silver’s ongoing prison saga, a Manhattan federal appeals court has ruled that the convicted Democrat can stay out of jail until the court hears his request for bail pending appeal. :mad:

Silver, 74, had been ordered to turn himself in to the Bureau of Prisons on Oct. 5 to begin his seven-year sentence for $4 million in kickbacks he pocketed in a 10-year period as speaker of the Assembly.

The one-page appeals court ruling, by Judge Peter Hall, stays that order and calls for Silver’s lawyers to be heard at the “next available motions panel.” It’s unclear if the hearing could be squeezed in before Oct. 5.

The judge said the court will also hear Silver’s request to overturn the lower court’s order for $1.75 million in financial penalties.

Silver has not spent a single day in prison since he was arrested in 2015 for lining his pockets through two schemes, including sending half a million dollars in state grants to a cancer doctor who was sending him lucrative patient referrals. :mad: :mad: :mad:

His first conviction in 2015 was overturned by the same appeals court due to errors in the jury instructions tied to a US Supreme Court ruling in 2016 that narrowed the definition of public corruption.

He was retried earlier this year and convicted on all counts.
 
https://nypost.com/2018/10/03/sheldon-silver-gets-to-stay-out-of-prison-for-a-few-more-months/

Sheldon Silver gets to stay out of prison for a few more months
By Kaja Whitehouse
October 3, 2018 | 2:03pm | Updated October 3, 2018 | 2:11pm

Convicted ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver will remain a free man until at least December — thanks to a panel of appeals court judges who said he deserves a second shot at an appeal of his bribery conviction while remaining free on bail. :mad:

Silver had been scheduled to surrender to prison Friday after he was convicted at his corruption retrial of pocketing $4 million in bribes as one of Albany’s most powerful politicians, on a par with Gov. Andrew Cuomo and ex-head of the state Senate Dean Skelos.

Thanks to Wednesday’s appeals court ruling, Silver could avoid starting his seven-year sentence until the end of the year, if not longer, based on the “expedited” appeals schedule outlined by the judges.

In fast-tracking his appeal, the three-judge panel set a deadline for all the paperwork to be in by Dec. 3. A panel of judges could hear the case at any time after that.

Silver, 74, has not spent a single day in prison since he was arrested in 2015 for lining his pockets through two schemes, including sending half a million dollars in state grants to a cancer doctor who was sending him lucrative patient referrals.

His first conviction was overturned by the same appeals court due to errors in the jury instructions tied to a US Supreme Court ruling in 2016 that narrowed the definition of public corruption.
 
https://nypost.com/2019/03/13/sheldon-silver-could-get-third-trial-as-panel-reviews-conviction/

Sheldon Silver could get third trial as panel reviews conviction
By Priscilla DeGregory
March 13, 2019 | 7:36pm | Updated March 13, 2019 | 10:57pm

A three-judge appeals panel took a hard, and unusually long look Wednesday at ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s appeal of his second conviction over $4 million in bribes — leaving open the chance that he could get yet a third trial.

The panel spent more than an hour hearing out Silver’s prosecutors and lawyers, and asked multiple questions on whether a quid-pro-quo was sufficiently proven.

Circuit Judge Richard J. Sullivan said a description by prosecutors of what Silver promised to do in return for alleged bribes was “pretty squishy.”

And he seemed critical of the prosecution’s efforts to claim proof of Silver’s crimes included his advice on how to get a charity race permit, something the then-speaker provided a doctor who referred law clients to him.

“If somebody wants to pay money for that, it’s not good, but it’s not a crime, right?” Sullivan asked.

Some of the payments could be seen as “just currying favor” with Silver, noted Circuit Judge Richard C. Wesley.

Prosecutors, though, are insisting that there was enough evidence of a quid-pro-quo and that jurors were properly instructed in the law.

Silver, 75, is appealing his conviction and seven-year prison sentence.

He has remained free on $200,000 bail throughout his two trials, two convictions and their subsequent appeals, and has yet to spend a single night in jail since he was first charged in 2015.
 
https://nypost.com/2019/03/14/sheld...ut-of-jail-as-judges-consider-his-conviction/

Sheldon Silver gets to stay out of jail as judges consider his conviction
By Andrew Denney
March 14, 2019 | 7:02pm | Updated March 14, 2019 | 11:10pm

Twice-convicted former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver will stay out of jail while a three-judge panel mulls whether to throw out his most recent conviction for taking $4 million in bribes. :mad:

The appeals court on Thursday granted the disgraced pol’s application to remain free, a day after the panel took a hard look at Silver’s conviction, with judges questioning whether prosecutors proved his actions could be defined as public corruption.

Second Circuit Judge Richard Sullivan said at the hearing that prosecutors gave a “pretty squishy” definition of what Silver, who was once one of the three most powerful politicians in New York, said he would do in exchange for passing business along to a law firm.

Silver, 75, faces seven years in prison if his conviction stands. He has been out of jail on $200,000 since he was first charged in 2015.

In 2016, the US Supreme Court issued a ruling that narrowed the definition of an “official act” and how it’s used to instruct juries’ public corruption convictions, which has led judges in lower courts to press prosecutors harder on whether a pol’s allegedly illegal acts might just be unseemly.

The Second Circuit cited that ruling, which cleared former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell of corruption charges, when it overturned Silver’s first conviction.
 
https://nypost.com/2019/08/27/corrupt-ex-pol-shel-silver-still-freely-roams-nyc-after-conviction/

Corrupt ex-pol Sheldon Silver still freely roams NYC after conviction
By Kevin Fasick, Bernadette Hogan and Aaron Feis
August 27, 2019 | 9:59pm | Updated

sheldon-silver.jpg

Disgraced State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver
Rashid Umar Abbasi


There’s still no cell for Shel.

Some 474 days after former state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was convicted — for the second time — of peddling his office’s influence in exchange for millions in kickbacks, he remains a free man.

Silver, 75, still hasn’t spent a single night behind bars, as his case is again before a panel of federal appeals court judges and continues to live on public funds — his nearly $7,000 monthly state pension.

But Silver, spotted strolling around his Lower East Side stomping grounds on Tuesday, hardly had the gracious demeanor of a man free to enjoy a beautiful late summer day.

“You’ll make it up anyway, so why should I tell you?” Silver snapped at a Post reporter who asked him how he was spending his time on the outside.

The disgraced former speaker then retreated into his apartment building.

Silver reemerged a short time later but again refused to talk and cut through a park to head back into his Grand Street building.

After a 2015 federal conviction on charges including extortion, money laundering and fraud was overturned on appeal, Silver was again found guilty on May 11, 2018, and sentenced two months later to seven years behind bars.

But, despite twice being convicted of selling the power of one of the highest seats in the state in exchange for some $4 million in dirty money, Silver — who posted $200,000 bail when his first trial began — remains a man about town, in part thanks to a healthy state pension.

Though many of Silver’s assets are temporarily frozen amid the protracted legal saga, he is still drawing a $6,601.89 monthly pension, as he has since his December 2015 retirement, forced by his conviction, according to the State Comptroller’s Office.

In the interim, a review of Silver’s second conviction is ongoing — a process with no firm deadline — that could culminate in his going a third round with federal prosecutors.

Following his initial conviction, Silver’s lawyers appealed to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

A three-judge panel heard arguments from both sides in March but have yet to issue a ruling.

They could either uphold the conviction — leaving Silver the option to appeal to the US Supreme Court — or overturn it, meaning he could face a third trial.

In 2016, the nation’s highest court issued a ruling that narrowed the definition of an “official act” and how it should be used to instruct juries considering public corruption charges.

The Second Circuit — which mulled Silver’s first appeal and is eying his second — cited that ruling in the initial reversal, claiming that a properly instructed jury may not have found Silver guilty.

Silver was convicted of engaging in two quid-pro-quo schemes of exerting his influence to line his pockets.

In one scam, Silver steered $500,000 in taxpayer-funded research grants to a Columbia University cancer doctor in exchange for the doctor directing asbestos patients to Silver’s law firm, Weitz & Luxenberg.

Silver’s legal team employed a blunt but ultimately unsuccessful tactic at the opening of his second trial, contending that while Silver’s actions were unseemly, they were not illegal.

“Distasteful is not criminal,” said lead defense attorney (((Michael Feldberg))) at the time.

“A conflict of interest is not a criminal offense.” :rolleyes:
 
https://nypost.com/2020/01/21/sheldon-silvers-2018-corruption-conviction-partially-upheld/

Sheldon Silver’s 2018 corruption conviction partially overturned
By Emily Saul
January 21, 2020 | 12:11pm | Updated

An appeals court Tuesday partially overturned the most recent conviction of disgraced former state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.

In an 84-page ruling, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Silver’s conviction on charges of honest services wire fraud, extortion, and monetary transactions involving crime proceeds.

Meanwhile, they vacated the 75-year-old’s conviction on honest services mail fraud and wire fraud, and remanded his case back to Manhattan federal court judge Valerie Caproni for re-sentencing. :mad:

The dismissed counts bring the maximum sentence Silver could receive down from 140 years to to 80 years, though it’s unlikely that Caproni would exceed her previous 7-year-sentence.

A new sentencing date has not yet been set.

Jurors in 2018 found the former political heavyweight guilty of two schemes — funneling state monies to a cancer researcher in return for patient referrals to Silver’s law firm, and supporting a real estate developer’s position on rent regulations in exchange for some $4 million in bribes.

Yet the appeals court unanimously ruled that the charges related to the cancer scheme could not stand, as a judge had failed to properly instruct them as to the law on those counts.

Tuesday’s decision comes after Silver’s 2015 federal conviction was overturned on appeal — leading to his retrial and conviction in May 2018.

He’s been out on bail pending appeal.

The shamed Silver continues to live on the Lower East Side on public funds, collecting a $7,000 monthly state pension.

Silver’s attorney Meir Feder declined to answer questions or say whether or not his client planned o appeal the decision. They can either ask the appellate panel to hear arguments again, or request that the US Supreme Court hear the case.

The Manhattan US Attorney’s office did not immediately comment.
 
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