“The anticipated federal corruption trial against Ramapo Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence and a former top economic development aide has been rescheduled for April, with the judge promising no more delays, court documents say.
St. Lawrence, a Democrat and the town’s 16-year supervisor, and former deputy town attorney Aaron Troodler face charges of securities and wire fraud and conspiracy involving the financing of the town’s baseball stadium and other projects developed through the Ramapo Local Development Corp. Troodler served as the quasi-government’s executive director, while St. Lawrence chaired the agency’s three-member board.
A trial first had been scheduled for Jan. 9 and adjourned to Jan. 30. But defense attorneys have clamored for more time to analyze more than 350,000 documents and more than 1.5 million pages, as well as hours of audio recordings and 10 boxes of Ramapo documents. The recordings involve the supervisor and other town officials and employees.
The scheduled April 17 start of jury selection will not be adjourned again, according to a court notation from Judge Cathy Seibel, a former prosecutor with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in White Plains and Manhattan.
When the trial starts in the White Plains federal courthouse, prosecutors have estimated they would need to call more than 30 witnesses and the trial will take four to five weeks to complete.
One potential witness at trial will be Melissa Reimer, the director of fiscal sevices. She became a whistle blower with others concerning alleged financial improprieties and she recorded conversations with town officials, according to court documents. Reimer has filed a lawsuit against Ramapo, but the civil case has been held in abeyance until after the criminal trial.”
Read the complete Journal News coverage here.
And please keep in mind that St. Lawrence’s candidate to replace convicted board member Samuel Tress is M. Rossman. Vote for him and you’ll get more of the same from St. Lawrence’s puppet board. We endorse and strongly urge that you vote for William Weber for Ramapo Town Council on the Reform Line Row H Box 12H.
