Double ‘cross’ by Pedro
Ex-Sen. dons crucifix to fight FBI talisman
Last Updated:
5:15 AM, May 11, 2012
Posted:
2:12 AM, May 11, 2012
This trial’s gone from political corruption to witchcraft.
Ex-state Sen. Pedro Espada Jr. dramatically donned rosary beads at his embezzlement trial yesterday — as he accused prosecutors and an FBI agent of using the occult to affect the jury’s deliberations.
“We’re in the homestretch, and so we’re pulling it [the rosary] out because we know that the prosecutors are sitting in a certain seating arrangement that I recognize as being a certain ritual,” Espada bizarrely told reporters after placing the religious beads around his neck in front of Brooklyn federal court.
The one-time Bronx powerhouse didn’t stop there, suggesting that
reporters ask the FBI agent why he felt the need to counteract her
courtroom juju.
“Ask Agent Mendoza. She’ll tell you,” Espada said, also vaguely complaining about what the agent “wears every day.”
“I wear the rosary. I’ve worn it all along. I’ve had it in my pocket, but she has orchestrated a certain seating arrangement in the juror box,” Espada ranted.
A source close to the one-time Senate majority leader said the rosary — with a large crucifix that dangles down to his belly — is designed to spiritually counter Mendoza’s habit of sitting in a specific seat in the jury box while deliberations continue in another room.
Espada believes Mendoza is engaging in a black-magic, or Santeria-related, ritual, invoking the occult to influence the jury’s decision, the source said.
Jurors, meanwhile, suggested they soon could reach at least a split verdict in the trial of Espada and his son, Pedro Gautier Espada.
In a note to Judge Frederic Block, a juror asked, “If we find one defendant guilty/not guilty and can’t come to a decision on the other defendant, what happens to the [criminal count]?”
“If we have agreement on one part but not the other, would that be considered as a valid verdict on that count?” another juror wrote.
Both Espadas are charged with eight counts for allegedly looting a federally funded nonprofit to the tune of $500,000.
Block called jurors into the courtroom and told them they had to make “a separate determination with respect to Pedro Espada [Jr.] and a separate determination with respect to Pedro Gautier Espada.”
“You deal with each one separately,” Block told the jurors. “You may return a partial verdict. You can do that.”
Block reminded them that if they reach a verdict about one set of charges but not on another, “you can continue to deliberate.”
Block then sent them back to the jury room, where they continued working until the end of the day.
dan.mangan@nypost.com
Ex-state Sen. Pedro Espada Jr. dramatically donned rosary beads at his embezzlement trial yesterday — as he accused prosecutors and an FBI agent of using the occult to affect the jury’s deliberations.
“We’re in the homestretch, and so we’re pulling it [the rosary] out because we know that the prosecutors are sitting in a certain seating arrangement that I recognize as being a certain ritual,” Espada bizarrely told reporters after placing the religious beads around his neck in front of Brooklyn federal court.
Gregory P. Mango
HEX FILES: Pedro Espada Jr. shows off his rosary outside court yesterday.
“Ask Agent Mendoza. She’ll tell you,” Espada said, also vaguely complaining about what the agent “wears every day.”
“I wear the rosary. I’ve worn it all along. I’ve had it in my pocket, but she has orchestrated a certain seating arrangement in the juror box,” Espada ranted.
A source close to the one-time Senate majority leader said the rosary — with a large crucifix that dangles down to his belly — is designed to spiritually counter Mendoza’s habit of sitting in a specific seat in the jury box while deliberations continue in another room.
Espada believes Mendoza is engaging in a black-magic, or Santeria-related, ritual, invoking the occult to influence the jury’s decision, the source said.
Jurors, meanwhile, suggested they soon could reach at least a split verdict in the trial of Espada and his son, Pedro Gautier Espada.
In a note to Judge Frederic Block, a juror asked, “If we find one defendant guilty/not guilty and can’t come to a decision on the other defendant, what happens to the [criminal count]?”
“If we have agreement on one part but not the other, would that be considered as a valid verdict on that count?” another juror wrote.
Both Espadas are charged with eight counts for allegedly looting a federally funded nonprofit to the tune of $500,000.
Block called jurors into the courtroom and told them they had to make “a separate determination with respect to Pedro Espada [Jr.] and a separate determination with respect to Pedro Gautier Espada.”
“You deal with each one separately,” Block told the jurors. “You may return a partial verdict. You can do that.”
Block reminded them that if they reach a verdict about one set of charges but not on another, “you can continue to deliberate.”
Block then sent them back to the jury room, where they continued working until the end of the day.
dan.mangan@nypost.com
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/double_cross_by_pedro_lCkip8Xuxr55PHIfVq4wLI#ixzz1ucT46kLi
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