Brian Benjamin, New York's former lieutenant governor, this month formally signaled for the first time that he plans to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review his bribery case after a lower court reinstated charges against him just over a month ago.
Benjamin's attorney Barry Berke filed an application asking for more time to submit a petition for a “writ of certiorari,” which, if granted, would require the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to send the case to the country's highest court for review.
The application was filed to Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who oversees the Second Circuit. The extension request would move the deadline from June 6 to Aug. 5, 2024.
Neither Benjamin nor Berke responded to requests for comment about the application.
Benjamin’s overture to the Supreme Court marks the latest development in a turbulent two years for the Harlem Democrat.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul handpicked Benjamin — then a state senator — for the role of lieutenant governor in August 2021, after she ascended to the governorship following the resignation of her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo. Benjamin was sworn in the next month, putting him first in line of succession to the governor’s office.
But his time as the state’s No. 2 executive lasted only eight months. He resigned hours after he was arrested on bribery-related charges in April 2022.
Manhattan federal prosecutors accused Benjamin of directing a $50,000 state grant to a Harlem nonprofit controlled by developer Gerald Migdol, who in turn allegedly made contributions to Benjamin’s political campaigns. Benjamin pleaded not guilty. He was also accused of lying on state vetting forms about whether he had ever used his governmental powers to benefit a donor.
But the bribery charges didn’t stick, at least initially. A federal judge tossed three of Benjamin’s five felony counts in December 2022, arguing that prosecutors had failed to allege an explicit quid pro quo. That left only two falsification of records charges against Benjamin.
The Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed course last month, reinstating the bribery charges and setting the stage for an appeal to the Supreme Court. Migdol, though, had died in February.
In the new filing, Benjamin’s attorney argues that the case concerns issues of “critical importance to our democracy: the circumstances in which the government can charge an elected official with bribery based solely on the receipt of campaign contributions and performance of ordinary course constituent services.”
The filing cites another pending case related to one of the bribery statutes at issue in Benjamin’s case, and his attorneys are requesting time to review the high court’s ruling before submitting their petition. Arguments in the other case, Snyder v. United States, are scheduled for Monday.
It’s not the first time a New York political figure has had their corruption case affected by the Supreme Court.
Joseph Percoco, a top aide to Cuomo, had his conviction partially overturned in 2022 after his legal team made his case directly to the high court. Former state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and state Senate leaders Dean Skelos and Joseph Bruno also had their separate convictions overturned after the Supreme Court ruled in similar cases, though all three were allowed to be retried. Silver and Skelos were convicted again, while Bruno was found not guilty.
Correction: This story was updated to clarify that former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Leaders Dean Skelos and Joe Bruno had their convictions overturned when the Supreme Court ruled in different cases that set a new legal precedent on specific charges.
