Upstream. A Mohawk Valley Blogzine.

Monday, August 28, 2006

NYS Supreme Court Provides Awkward Moment For DA Trish DeAngelis.

By now I’m sure you’ve already heard that Christine Wilhelm’s murder conviction was overturned by the Third District of the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court on Thursday. Wilhelm, who suffers from a severe psychotic condition, was prosecuted in 2002 by Rennselaer County DA Patricia DeAngelis (DeAngelis was an ADA at the time) for drowning her one son and attempting to drown the other.

You can read the entire 16 page decision yourself.

Carl Strock wrote a great column in yesterday’s Sunday Gazette about the court’s decision. The Times Union also wrote an editorial praising the decision and blasting Ms. DeAngelis. Even The Record came out from under its rock long enough to say that the DA "may have had the last nail pounded into her political coffin."

There is little to add to what Strock, The Record and The Times Union had to say except to note that DeAngelis has yet to post a press release concerning the decision on her web site. This is odd because if a court’s decision is favorable to her, she posts a press release before the ink is dry on the decision.

I also note an oddity that is mentioned on both pages three and fifteen of the decision. The prosecutor was at the Hoosick Falls Police Department shortly after Wilhelm was arrested and monitored Ms. Wilhelm while she went to the bathroom. DeAngelis did apologize for being with Ms. Wilhelm at such an “awkward” moment.

It seems that the court’s decision has provided another awkward moment for Patricia DeAngelis, but I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for an apology.

2 Comments:

  • Dan: I am surprised that Ed Girtler did not comment to this story. By the way, great job Jerry Frost!

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:38 PM  

  • In her recent statement, DeAngelis says she was just an "assistant DA, assigned to prosecute the case," like she had no say, no power to do otherwise. In fact, she was "senior trial attorney," a position created a couple of months before, (some say just for her) making her second in charge of the DA's office. Then, a week or two before the trial started, Ken Bruno announced he'd be leaving his position as DA. DeAngelis was made acting DA one week after opening arguments for the trial, and appointed DA by Pataki a few days before the trial was over. (The trial was 6 weeks.)
    What was to prevent her from offering a plea bargain after Bruno left? Now she says she may, only because she learned last November that her warped interpretation of justice is not politically popular.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 11:53 PM  

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