The defense said prosecutors were relying on Mr. Hickeys recollection of conversations that happened years ago, with no concrete evidence to corroborate his memory. Spota's attorney, Alan Vinegrad, told the judge his client is "a shadow" of his former self and a "fundamentally good" person who is devoted to his wife of 51 years, his three children and his grandchildren. The legislation Senator Flanagan sponsors has passed the Senate in both of the past two years but has died in . Three other police detectives had been in the room participating in the beating, and it was imperative that they all stuck to the same story. Mr. Hickey testified that he was ordered to instruct his men to deny, deny, deny. Mr. Spota and the others involved in the cover-up handpicked one of the three officers, Anthony Leto, to lie under oath about the assault during a court hearing, Mr. Hickey said. Burke pleaded guilty to civil rights violations and conspiracy to obstruct justice in February of 2016 and was sentenced to 46 months in prison. Published September 22, 2021 at 5:02 PM EDT. The federal judge said prosecutors have enormous power over life, liberty and reputation, but the defendants substantially abused that power by helping to cover up Loeb's assault, forcing detectives to lie to a grand jury and prosecutors and thwarting a grand jury investigation. Spota represented Burke years later as a private attorney when Burke faced internal police discipline after 1995 allegations which were substantiated that Burke engaged in sex acts with a known prostitute in police vehicles and failed to safeguard his service weapon. They placed fear of retaliation inside the minds of those who may otherwise have been willing to cooperate, and they interfered with efforts of federal investigators who were trying to get to the bottom of a heinous crime. CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. He was one of the most powerful men on Long Island, serving as the top prosecutor in a suburban county with 1.5 million people. Both men denied the charges, multiple reports said. According to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of New York, the pair will be sentenced on August 10 at 10:30 a.m. at the courthouse in Central Islip. Mr. "When a sitting District Attorney and one of his top prosecutors are corrupt and use their power to intimidate witnesses and cover up a brutal assault by a high-ranking law enforcement official, they not only jeopardize the safety of citizens who are entitled to the protection of the law, they also undermine confidence in the integrity and fairness of our criminal justice system," she said. The former official in Suffolk County was found guilty of conspiracy after a trial that exposed a culture of corruption. You better find out fast, if its not too late," Hickey testified the district attorney also told him that day. for over a decade, Spota had successfully helped Burke avoid legal trouble regularly during their decades-long friendship. "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. He graduated from Chaminade High School, a private Catholic school in Mineola, New York. To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com. The jury determined that Spota and McPartland obstructed justice by covering for former Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke, who abused Loeb in 2012. But Azrack said that by participating in the cover-up, both defendants sent the message that prosecutorial power in Suffolk can be abused, civil rights violations will be tolerated and that some people in the county are above the law. The star prosecution witness said during the trial that he began drinking while under extreme pressure to keep his intelligence unit detectives quiet about the Loeb beating. He always had a soft spot for a police officer named James Burke, who rose under his tutelage to become the countys chief of police. HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- The families of four victims killed in hit-and-run crashes in Suffolk County called on Albany on Tuesday to enact tougher sentences for drivers who flee the scene. Both men denied the charges, multiple reports said. 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. Thomas Spota allegedly conspired with Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke and a top deputy in the DA's office to pressure witnesses to not cooperate with an FBI investigation into the 2012. Anyone can read what you share. Chief Burke thought nobody would believe his word over the police chiefs, according to witness testimony. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Email: alek@riverheadlocal.com. August 10, 2021 / 7:09 PM / CBS New York CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota was sentenced Tuesday for a cover-up involving the county's. Loeb spoke to the judge before Spota and McPartland were sentenced. Boeckmann also called their punishments fitting. CENTRAL ISLIP, Long Island (WABC) -- Former Suffolk County District Attorney Tom Spota was sentenced to five years in prison Tuesday following his 2019 conviction for helping cover for a former protg who as police chief punched a handcuffed man suspected of stealing embarrassing items from his police department SUV, including sex toys and pornography. [13], In May 2013 the FBI and the US Attorney's Office opened an investigation into alleged actions by James Burke, Chief of the Suffolk County Police Department: the alleged assault of a suspect in police custody, a subsequent cover-up, and coercion of witnesses. Some police officers were in the interrogation room when Burke walked in and punched Loeb, prosecutors said. They pointed to a state judges determination in 1990 that Mr. Hickey had lied under oath as a police officer in a different burglary case. 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. [5], Spota was born in 1941 and grew up in New Hyde Park, New York, on Long Island. 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. McPartland, who worked directly under Spota, also had built a close friendship with Burke, and was the first person who Burke called the morning he discovered that his vehicle had been burglarized. He told jurors he acted as a middleman in a yearslong conspiracy to cover-up Loebs beating after being tasked with ensuring the silence of the three detectives. Krantz had argued that McPartland already had lost his reputation, life savings and like Spota his law license. Vinegrad also raised the possibility of the former district attorney, who was vaccinated against COVID-19 becoming infected in prison and then possibly dying. Mr. Burke later became a police officer. 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. With great power comes great responsibility and, as weve proven throughout the course of this investigation, Mr. Spota and Mr. McPartland abused their power to skirt their responsibility to comply with a federal civil rights investigation. US Eastern District Judge Joan Azrack handed down the 60-month stint behind bars and $100,000 in fines for the 79-year-old Spota aftera jury found the ex-district attorney guiltyof charges ranging from conspiracy to witness-tampering in 2019. But a few months later, in early 2013, Mr. Loebs lawyer publicly accused the police of assault, triggering a civil rights investigation. The pre-pandemic verdict supported the prosecution's contention that both defendants orchestrated a cover-up of the beating of the shackled burglary suspect that Burke carried out with three detectives inside a Hauppauge precinct. Thomas Spota and one his top aides in the Suffolk County district attorney's office, Christopher McPartland, were convicted in December 2019 on counts of conspiracy, obstruction of justice . While doing so, Azrack said Spota did "incalculable damage" to the criminal justice system after "not a momentary lapse" in judgment but a yearslong conspiracy that included threats against witnesses. They're guilty," Loeb wrote on Facebook in 2019. [14] In October 2017, Spota and an aide were indicted on charges of obstructing the investigation of James Burke for police brutality. Prosecutors alleged that Spota and McPartland illegally intervened after the Dec. 14, 2012 beating. Proving obstruction of justice required the government to present evidence that the defendants acted with a corrupt purpose, a high legal bar. The man in custody, Christopher Loeb, was a heroin user with a long criminal record. No sales tax increase for clean water initiative: government must find another way, Holidays open the floodgates of family memories, March is an awareness month that hits home. Mr. Spota set out to protect and defend Chief Burke, as he had before over a 40-year friendship, prosecutors said. Thomas Spota and one his top aides in the Suffolk County district attorney's office, Christopher McPartland, were convicted in December 2019 on counts of conspiracy, obstruction of . Christopher McPartland, right, leaving his trial last month in Central Islip, N.Y. He entered private law practice in Suffolk, representing clients including the Suffolk Detectives Association and other law enforcement unions.[7]. They placed fear of retaliation inside the minds of those who may otherwise have been willing to cooperate, and they interfered with efforts of federal investigators who were trying to get to the bottom of a heinous crime. The U.S. attorney's office also argued that the defendants hadn't accepted responsibility for their actions and deserved more time in prison than sentencing guidelines recommended because of "the need for deterrence" and the "egregiousness" of their actions. [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]. They're guilty," Loeb wrote on Facebook in 2019. But Spota, who knew of Burkes police disciplinary history, responded to the allegation by saying Burkes off-duty firearm was taken in a pattern of burglaries in his neighborhood, prosecutors told jurors. There were sex toys and porn in the pouch, and Loeb taunted the chief while being grilled over the robbery, calling him a pervert.. I met with the Mrs. Lucero, the mother. She ordered McPartland to surrender on Nov. 10. Former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota and a former top aide, Christopher McPartland, surrendered at separate federal prisons Friday, prison officials told Newsday. The governments case is being handled by the Offices Long Island Criminal Division. Mr. Spota, a lawyer for the police union at the time, defended Mr. Burke and negotiated a plea deal that saved his career. Bellone, the Suffolk County Executive, said outside the federal courthouse Tuesday he knew he had inherited a government in crisis when he began serving in his role a decade ago. Loeb, the abused prisoner, also spoke in court Tuesday, telling the judge that Spota "should spend the rest of his life 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. 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. She found that sentencing enhancements should apply because Spota and McPartland abused their positions of public trust, substantially interfered with the administration of justice, held leadership roles and committed crimes extensive in scope and planning. Ultimately, the 12 jurors chose to believe Mr. Hickey. LONG ISLAND, NY Former Suffolk County District Attorney Tom Spota, 79, and his chief investigator, found guilty of obstruction by a jury in 2019 for covering up an incident during which a man was beaten after he stole a duffel bag from a former police chief filled with sex toys and pornography are set for sentencing. Azrack explained Tuesday that she was intentionally punishing the defendants with more prison time than Burke received. Spota: Yes, I met with them. McPartland, 55, will begin his sentence Nov. 10. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Boeckmann said in court Tuesday that Spota still hadn't apologized for actions that had "an absolute chilling effect" on the county's criminal justice system and implored the judge to impose prison time.