Archive | Courts

Out of the Cold

DNA the difference in Moscatelli murder

By Diya Chacko

May 3, 2010

An armed guard presses a hidden button, and two separate doors slide open to reveal a large room with yellow walls and plastic chairs. The room is on the second floor of the Downstate Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison in Fishkill, NY. Continue Reading

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Murdered, But Not Forgotten

Friends of Victims Still Feel the Loss

By Darius Dixon
February 2, 2010

It was a brisk May evening in lower Manhattan when Halil Korkmaz decided to take his new motorcycle out for a spin. He recently purchased a new Honda CBR 900 styled with red paint. At the time, Korkmaz, a Turkish immigrant, was the maître d’ at Downtown, the SoHo incarnation of a high-end Italian restaurant chain. Friends and co-workers recalled that he was “fanatical about motorcycles.” Continue Reading

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“The Best Drama in Town”

John Gotti Jr.’s trial in federal court had it all
By Darius Dixon
November 11, 2009

Tuesday morning began with John “Junior” Gotti attempting to boycott his own murder and corruption trial in Manhattan federal court. And it ended with his mother storming out of the courtroom. In between, the defense gave its summation and the government delivered its rebuttal.

The last leg of Gotti’s fourth trial in five years was set to resume at 10 a.m. Instead, Judge P. Kevin Castel announced that he had received a phone call from U.S. marshals just two hours earlier and the trial was on hold. The marshals informed Castel that Gotti “did not wish to participate in today’s proceedings,” or “in the remainder of the trial.”

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Fashion Statement

A slip and fall turns into $150,000

By Frances McInnis
November 15, 2009

Whoever coined the phrase “fashion victim” probably didn’t have this in mind.

Roberto Cavalli, the Italian fashion house known for its sumptuous evening gowns, is facing a potentially costly personal injury lawsuit from a man who fell and fractured his ankle in front of its Madison Avenue store in December 2003. Papa Diop, 43, is also suing Madison Immobilier, LLC, which owns the building at the corner of East 63rd Street and Madison Avenue. Continue Reading

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