We knew that the driver who killed a young Williamsburg couple and their unborn child had been arrested for DWI two weeks before the fatal crash. Now it's emerging that the judge who handled Julio Acevedo's arraignment was supposed to suspend his license, but failed to do so. Why? Basically, he was rusty.
In an explosive scoop, the Daily News reports that a prosecutor tried to get Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Michael Gary (he sent Poster Boy to jail) to keep Acevedo behind bars, arguing that the ex-con "has a bench warrant history." When the Judge Gary refused, prosecutor Ashley Ford reminded him that he was required to suspend Acevedo's license, saying, "I believe the statute requires that the license be suspended. I’m not quite sure it’s discretionary.”
But Judge Gary refused. According to the transcript, he said, "I don’t believe that I must do it. If I’m wrong, the judge can correct me on April 10 (Acevedo’s next court date), but I think I’m correct." Gary, a former prosecutor, was appointed to the bench in 1987. He rotates into arraignment court five days out of the year. One defense attorney who specializes in DWI cases tells the News, "Most criminal court judges who deal with these cases on a regular basis are aware of this provision and automatically suspend the license."
Informed of the error, Yitzchak Silberstein, the bereaved father of victim Raizel Glauber, told the News, “It will not bring them back, my children, and that’s all.” Meanwhile, Acevedo was indicted today on charges of leaving the scene of an accident where death results. He is expected to face further indictments for criminally negligent homicide and other charges.
But some in South Williamsburg's tight-knit community are outraged Acevedo isn't facing vehicular manslaughter charges. "I hate this country and the laws here," Abraham Handler, a close friend of Nachman Glauber, tells the News. "When I first came here the laws were better. Now I hate the laws."
