Post by Anja Nieser on Sept 6, 2006 18:22:32 GMT -5
Judge: Prosecutors can't use confession in '94 RB killings
A judge has barred prosecutors from using the under-oath confession and
guilty plea of a Florida man charged with ordering the 1994 strangulation
killings of 2 Redondo Beach men.
Superior Court Judge Curtis Rappe sided with defense arguments that in
1996 the top-drawer defense lawyers for defendant Howard Bloomgarden gave
him "ineffective assistance" in advising him to plead guilty in a New York
federal racketeering case and to admit his role in the abductions and
killings of Peter Kovach, 26, and Ted Gould, 29, in a Lawndale motel room.
The ruling means state prosecutors would not be able to use Bloomgarden's
admission or plea against him in pursuing convictions on murder and
kidnapping charges.
The ruling, issued Friday, capped a lengthy legal battle fought by
Bloomgarden's Los Angeles lawyer, Marcia Morrissey.
Deputy District Attorney Hoon Chun said he had no comment about the
judge's ruling, but that his office is still "proceeding with the case." A
preliminary hearing is set for November.
Bloomgarden, who is serving a 33-year federal prison term, still faces a
life prison term or possibly the death penalty if convicted. Only after
successful preliminary hearings do Los Angeles County prosecutors announce
whether they will pursue the death penalty.
In his 1996 plea, Bloomgarden, 38, stated in court that he financed a
kidnapping crew, which mostly came from New York, and on the night of the
abduction "spoke to a co-conspirator and approved the murders."
That co-conspirator was Kenneth Friedman, who was already serving 2 life
terms in the federal case when he pleaded guilty in California court to
the murders of Kovach and Gould. Last year Friedman was sentenced to
death.
As part of Bloomgarden's 1996 plea deal, federal prosecutors chose not to
seek a life prison term. He could complete his federal prison term in
2025.
But the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office was not part of the
plea agreement and prosecutors here chose to pursue a case against him
separately.
Morrissey contended that Bloomgarden's New York lawyers, led by Gerald
Shargel -- who has represented high-profile clients such as the late Mafia
figure John Gotti -- did not fully consider the impact Bloomgarden's
in-court admission and guilty plea would have on the California charges.
She contended that Bloomgarden's plea was "involuntary" because he was not
advised that he could possibly face execution.
"Howard Bloomgarden entered into this plea in New York in order to have a
chance of some day coming home ... to give him a release date on paper,"
Morrissey said Tuesday. "What (his lawyers) did not tell him was by doing
that he was effectively pleading to capital crimes here."
In recent months, several of Bloomgarden's lawyers have testified on the
matter, acknowledging they were more focused on settling the federal court
case.
Even without Bloomgarden's admission, prosecutors have evidence that could
link him to the crimes.
During a stint in jail before the killings, Friedman spoke on the
telephone with someone he called "H" -- who police said was Bloomgarden --
and discussed the kidnapping plan. A recording of the conversation was
used in Friedman's case.
Also, Bloomgarden's accountant allegedly wired money to the kidnapping
crew when they were in the Los Angeles area.
Bloomgarden and Kovach were former college roommates who later led a
coast-to-coast drug-trafficking operation. Kovach reportedly got out of
the illicit business and purchased an interest in a Torrance electronics
store, Galleria Telecom.
Bloomgarden allegedly believed that Kovach owed him money, so he and
others plotted Kovach's abduction to get the cash back.
On Oct. 26, 1994, a four-person kidnapping crew abducted Kovach and Gould,
his co-worker at Galleria Telecom, and took them to a nearby motel. After
Kovach told Bloomgarden in a telephone conversation that he didn't have
any money, Bloomgarden ordered Friedman to kill him.
Friedman did so, and then also killed Gould -- who by all accounts was an
innocent bystander -- because he was a witness.
Their bodies were later discovered in San Diego.
(source: The Daily Breeze)
A judge has barred prosecutors from using the under-oath confession and
guilty plea of a Florida man charged with ordering the 1994 strangulation
killings of 2 Redondo Beach men.
Superior Court Judge Curtis Rappe sided with defense arguments that in
1996 the top-drawer defense lawyers for defendant Howard Bloomgarden gave
him "ineffective assistance" in advising him to plead guilty in a New York
federal racketeering case and to admit his role in the abductions and
killings of Peter Kovach, 26, and Ted Gould, 29, in a Lawndale motel room.
The ruling means state prosecutors would not be able to use Bloomgarden's
admission or plea against him in pursuing convictions on murder and
kidnapping charges.
The ruling, issued Friday, capped a lengthy legal battle fought by
Bloomgarden's Los Angeles lawyer, Marcia Morrissey.
Deputy District Attorney Hoon Chun said he had no comment about the
judge's ruling, but that his office is still "proceeding with the case." A
preliminary hearing is set for November.
Bloomgarden, who is serving a 33-year federal prison term, still faces a
life prison term or possibly the death penalty if convicted. Only after
successful preliminary hearings do Los Angeles County prosecutors announce
whether they will pursue the death penalty.
In his 1996 plea, Bloomgarden, 38, stated in court that he financed a
kidnapping crew, which mostly came from New York, and on the night of the
abduction "spoke to a co-conspirator and approved the murders."
That co-conspirator was Kenneth Friedman, who was already serving 2 life
terms in the federal case when he pleaded guilty in California court to
the murders of Kovach and Gould. Last year Friedman was sentenced to
death.
As part of Bloomgarden's 1996 plea deal, federal prosecutors chose not to
seek a life prison term. He could complete his federal prison term in
2025.
But the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office was not part of the
plea agreement and prosecutors here chose to pursue a case against him
separately.
Morrissey contended that Bloomgarden's New York lawyers, led by Gerald
Shargel -- who has represented high-profile clients such as the late Mafia
figure John Gotti -- did not fully consider the impact Bloomgarden's
in-court admission and guilty plea would have on the California charges.
She contended that Bloomgarden's plea was "involuntary" because he was not
advised that he could possibly face execution.
"Howard Bloomgarden entered into this plea in New York in order to have a
chance of some day coming home ... to give him a release date on paper,"
Morrissey said Tuesday. "What (his lawyers) did not tell him was by doing
that he was effectively pleading to capital crimes here."
In recent months, several of Bloomgarden's lawyers have testified on the
matter, acknowledging they were more focused on settling the federal court
case.
Even without Bloomgarden's admission, prosecutors have evidence that could
link him to the crimes.
During a stint in jail before the killings, Friedman spoke on the
telephone with someone he called "H" -- who police said was Bloomgarden --
and discussed the kidnapping plan. A recording of the conversation was
used in Friedman's case.
Also, Bloomgarden's accountant allegedly wired money to the kidnapping
crew when they were in the Los Angeles area.
Bloomgarden and Kovach were former college roommates who later led a
coast-to-coast drug-trafficking operation. Kovach reportedly got out of
the illicit business and purchased an interest in a Torrance electronics
store, Galleria Telecom.
Bloomgarden allegedly believed that Kovach owed him money, so he and
others plotted Kovach's abduction to get the cash back.
On Oct. 26, 1994, a four-person kidnapping crew abducted Kovach and Gould,
his co-worker at Galleria Telecom, and took them to a nearby motel. After
Kovach told Bloomgarden in a telephone conversation that he didn't have
any money, Bloomgarden ordered Friedman to kill him.
Friedman did so, and then also killed Gould -- who by all accounts was an
innocent bystander -- because he was a witness.
Their bodies were later discovered in San Diego.
(source: The Daily Breeze)