Feds oppose move to dismiss former Portage mayor's bribery case
NWI Times
November 25, 2020
HAMMOND — Federal prosecutors are rejecting claims by former Portage Mayor James Snyder that his bribery case should be dismissed because his right to a speedy trial has been violated.
When trials are postponed beyond the initial 70-day setting from arraignment, the additional time is excluded from the Speedy Trial Act cited last week by Snyder's legal team, according to a motion filed by Jill Koster, assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Indiana.
The recent delay in Snyder's case was consistent with this practice, except that U.S. District Court Judge Theresa Springmann did not set a new trial date because she was unfamiliar with this court's calendar and did not know when the current swell in COVID-19 cases would subside enough to allow for a safe jury trial, the motion reads.
Snyder sought the dismissal Thursday, the same day U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly of the Northern District of Illinois was appointed to oversee the case after Springmann again recused herself.
"Even if Mr. Snyder’s retrial began on January 30, 2021 — the first day available after the District’s General Order 2020-32 expires — it would be outside the 70-day window provided by the Speedy Trial Act," according to a filing by Snyder's defense team.
A status hearing on Snyder's case is scheduled for later Wednesday morning.
Snyder's team of attorneys argue the Speedy Trial Act mandates dismissal and there is "compelling circumstances" calling for dismissal without the right to refile the charge.
"In addition, a trial on a count taking place eight years after much of the relevant conduct occurred, more than four years after the indictment was returned, two years after the applicable statute of limitations lapsed, and more than a year after a new trial was ordered, would violate Mr. Snyder’s Sixth Amendment speedy trial right," according to the motion. "Following dismissal, this case may finally proceed to sentencing on the tax count."
Snyder was indicted in late 2016 and was found guilty in early 2019 of bribery and federal tax violations.
The bribery verdict was overturned in late 2019, and Springmann decided last month Snyder must face a new jury on the bribery charge, overruling defense arguments that a second trial was barred by the constitutional protection against double jeopardy.
It was announced Nov. 16 that Snyder's new bribery trial, which was set to begin Dec. 7, has been postponed until sometime after Jan. 29 due to concerns over threats posed by the worsening COVID-19 pandemic.
Federal prosecutors are again trying to prove Snyder solicited a bribe from two Portage businessmen.
The government alleges the then-mayor steered $1.125 million in contracts for the city of Portage to buy garbage trucks from a Portage trucking firm in 2013.
The government alleges Snyder solicited and received a $13,000 bribe from the firm’s former owners a few weeks later.
Snyder has pleaded not guilty.
His law team argues the $13,000 was a legitimate payment for consulting services Snyder provided the trucking dealership to save money on the cost of insurance and information technology.
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