Judge: New York ex-Assembly Speaker remains free for now

Judge Valerie Caproni today set a new schedule for the former Lower East Side assemblyman’s case.

In a ruling that appears to bolster Sheldon Silver’s appeal of his public-corruption conviction, a federal judge said on Thursday that the former New York Assembly speaker can stay out of prison while he awaits a decision.

Silver is appealing his conviction over fraud, extortion and money laundering charges based on a recent Supreme Court ruling that defined corruption more narrowly than before.

Caproni, sitting in Manhattan, said that Silver’s behavior would undoubtedly qualify for conviction even under the new, narrower standard for an “official act” that can be part of a corrupt scheme, but jury instructions in his case left open the possibility that jurors might also have convicted for an act that no longer qualifies.

Caproni said she did not tell “the jury that merely arranging a meeting, attending an event, hosting a reception, or making a speech are, standing alone, official acts”.

Sheldon Silver will remain a free man for at least a few more weeks.

Caproni says Silver can remain free on appeal because it is a “close question” whether legal instructions the jury received before returning its verdict past year were erroneous.

In a statement, defense lawyers Steven Molo and Joel Cohen said they were “grateful that the trial judge agrees that there is now a substantial legal question about the conviction”. We look forward to vigorously pursuing Mr. But both were convicted of corruption charges and ousted from office before the year ended.