Judge Drops The Hammer On Alvin Bragg - JUSTICE SERVED!
The New York courts appear to be the opposite of justice, as while undocumented immigrants flood New York City, the courts focus on minor offenses that are debatable as to whether they should even be considered crimes.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has decided to target a few individuals who allegedly bought fraudulent vaccine passports. The New York County District Attorney’s Office, under Bragg’s leadership, discovered that hundreds of people across the nation had purchased fake COVID-19 vaccination cards, resulting in felony charges for some.
In at least two cases, individuals bought the fake cards to keep their jobs, as they seemingly did not want to get vaccinated.
Out of over two hundred involved, sixteen faced felony charges. Fourteen of these individuals pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of possessing a forged document. The last two defendants, accused of buying counterfeit COVID-19 vaccine cards, had no prior arrests.
Others faced charges for falsifying a healthcare database, a more serious offense than merely buying fake passports to retain their employment.
However, Supreme Court Justice Brendan T. Lantry has now criticized Bragg, dismissing felony charges against two individuals accused of purchasing fake COVID-19 vaccine passports.
After hearing the arguments, Justice Lantry concluded that pursuing felony charges in this instance was excessive, especially when compared to other, more serious crimes being dismissed by the prosecutor’s office.
The ruling called out Bragg’s office, indicating that justice is not being served due to inconsistencies in prosecutorial practices.
“This Court is astonished to see the People make such an argument when the People routinely—nearly daily—move to dismiss significantly more serious counts or entire indictments in the interests of justice,” Justice Lantry stated.
“An indictment or any count thereof may be dismissed in furtherance of justice... when, even though there may be no basis for dismissal as a matter of law upon any ground specified... such dismissal is required as a matter of judicial discretion by the existence of some compelling factor, consideration, or circumstance clearly demonstrating that conviction or prosecution of the defendant upon such indictment or count would constitute or result in injustice,” he said.
“Clearly, Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree is not among the most serious crimes in the New York Penal Law, nor are the factual allegations against Defendants R.V. and J.O. particularly serious in nature,” the judge wrote.
The court noted the significant differences between all the accused, recognizing that some were trying to save their jobs while others were more deeply involved in the fake passport scheme.
The court seemed inclined to issue charges against two of the defendants, while agreeing that some of the defendants had committed more serious infractions.
The case underscores Bragg’s tendency to exceed the discretion expected in his role. Last year, Bragg’s office brought charges against President Donald Trump in the well-known “hush money” case involving a payment to a porn star.
In an article for the New York Post, Jonathan Turley commented on Bragg’s insistence on bringing charges against the former president, even though the case was considered “weak.”
Turley wrote last March:
“The problem is that Bragg has long been searching for a crime in the criminal code to fulfill his pitch during his campaign that he was the man for voters who wanted to bag Trump.
“The falsification of business records in reference to the $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels might have been a possibility, but it lacked two things.
“First, it expired as a chargeable misdemeanor after two years – and that was roughly five years ago. Second, it was a mere misdemeanor that could be brushed off by Trump even if they succeeded.”
It has become evident that Bragg and AG Letitia James will pursue any route to pin something on Trump.
As Trump has repeatedly asserted that he broke no laws, and announced his candidacy for the White House in 2024, the ongoing attacks against him are clearly an attempt to hinder the candidate. Trump continues to vigorously fight all charges. The next court date is March 25, 2024.
On Monday, Trump attorney Clifford Robert criticized a report from last week that inaccurately portrayed Trump’s firm’s finances.
“This is truly a joke,” another Trump attorney, Chris Kise, told ABC News. “Indeed, it is shocking that President Trump has been forced to pay millions for a Monitor to prove what he has said from the outset, namely, there is no financial reporting misconduct, no fraud, and simply no basis for this abusive process to continue.”
Kise continued, “This is not just about President Trump. Every major bank CEO and every Wall Street participant should speak out now before the Attorney General’s shocking and tyrannical interference in the capital markets places all New York business transactions at risk.”