BOSTON “Lying, cheating, stealing and shakedowns. That’s what this case is about,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Hafer on the first day of testimony in the Jasiel Correia II trial. “You will hear there was a price to pay in Fall River.
Witness testimony began Monday in the 24-count case of the United States versus Jasiel Correia II, whose fate will be decided by a jury that includes 11 women and three men.
In opening arguments, Hafer came out swinging as he laid out highlights to the jury regarding the case against 29-year-old Correia.
In his opening statement, defense attorney Kevin Reddington called into question “the legitimacy of witness testimony.” Three former associates have taken plea deals in exchange for their cooperation with the federal government for their role in an alleged extortion scheme hatched by the former mayor to take money from marijuana companies looking to do business in Fall River.
BOSTON Plexiglas, social distancing and masks are the new reality as court systems work to balance public health during a pandemic and the right of the accused to have a timely and fair trial.
With former mayor Jasiel Correia II’s trial set to begin on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock in a final pretrial conference on Monday gave an overview of new court protocols. Only 26 people will be allowed in Courtroom 1 the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse for the duration of the trial.
Woodlock said he anticipated the trial could last more than three weeks.
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BOSTON COVID-19 health safety concerns and possible intense media coverage in the upcoming 24-count extortion and fraud trial of former Mayor Jasiel Correia II were the top topics for federal court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock in a half-hour pre-trial conference on Friday. Jury selection is scheduled to start on April 20.
Woodlock indicated in a remote hearing that he has set aside four days for jury selection, in part due to restraints of capacity to accommodate the assembly of jurors at the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse in Boston because of the pandemic.
The judge also offered a less-than-cloaked warning to media covering the high-profile trial.
FALL RIVER While in office, former Mayor Jasiel Correia II was engaged briefly as a private consultant with the marijuana company Northeast Alternatives, with his new gig sanctioned by the state Ethics Commission in 2018.
Despite promising his consulting work with Northeast Alternatives would not include city business in his capacity as mayor, just seven days later Correia signed a letter of non-opposition and host agreement allowing the pot company to open a facility in the city, after getting advice in an email from an Ethics Commission attorney.
Four days after getting the letter and agreement, a principal at Northeast Alternatives donated $20,000 to Correia’s legal defense fund.