Sheldon Silver’s release-and-catch
Okay, what genius gave felon Shelly Silver a home furlough while awaiting the decision on granting him home confinement, which now blessingly seems to have been denied? Was it the warden at the Otisville federal lockup, where Silver has now rightly been returned? Was the green light for Silver’s little overnight vacation to Grand St. given by federal Bureau of Prisons Northeast Regional Director Nicole English, or even Director Michael Carvajal down in D.C.?
Someone in authority authorized that this scoundrel be set
free temporarily, as he tried to worm his way out his six-and-a-half-year term
after only a few months using the ruse of the COVID pandemic, which is a lot
less pandemic-ish in Orange County these days. In any event, at this point,
vaccines were supposed to be well on their way to all federal prisoners.
The closed-lip BOP had better start talking. If not, the
Department of Justice or Congress must force out the answers about Silver’s
escapade. Although maybe Silver’s arrival on the Lower East Side and his
pathetic play for sympathy sitting in a wheelchair was for the best, as the
immediate uproar caused a quick rethinking among his jailers and a speedy trip
back to prison.
Last summer, facing his sentence, Silver begged in a
handwritten note: “Your Honor, I do not want to die in prison.” To ensure that
he makes it all the way to his March 10, 2026 release date, he should eat three
squares and exercise in the prison yard.
Remember what Silver’s guilty of: four separate felony
counts of obtaining big bucks in real estate kickbacks in exchange for
providing official help to a few friendly insiders and money laundering. Maybe
he can use his expertise in the prison laundry.
And it wasn’t a literal crime, but Silver’s underhanded
repeal of the commuter tax will grow from the current $15.6 billion in lost
revenue to New York City to near $20 billion when he gets out. A lot of damage
for one small man.
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