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| McNALLY |
I supposed I have to weigh in on John Halacy, the Rensselaer
guy charged with sexually assaulting two young teenage girls who was sprung
from jail because of a procedural error by an assistant in the office of District
Attorney Rich McNally.
Some background: A defendant is afforded a right to a speedy
trial, which means prosecutors are required to take some sort of action within
90 days unless the defendant waives that right while the two sides try to work
out a deal. In Halacy’s case, there was evidently a verbal agreement to waive
the provision but it was never formally filed. As such, both felonies were
dismissed and they can’t be brought again thanks to double jeopardy. Halacy
walked out of jail basically a free man. Yes, he is facing new, but lesser,
charges and is looking at a year in jail rather than decades.
It’s not a flattering way for McNally to exit the office he’s
held for six years. As you know, he was elected to the Supreme Court and will
don the robes on Jan. 1.
A couple things. McNally told The Record it was the first
time such an incident has happened and I have no reason to believe the reporter
got it wrong so I’m going on the premise McNally said it. But, I know it has
happened before and I dare say more than once. To be fair, the exact quote is it’s
the first time it has “come up with this particular team in my administration”
so technically he might be right, but in reality it’s a misleading statement at
best.
He also said the ADA in charge of the case, Laura Kruegler, is
a “fairly new” ADA, but I know for a fact she has been there since Patricia
DeAngelis’s tenure. Kruegler’s Facebook page says she started in the DA’s
office in 2000, a long time for an attorney to work in any DA’s office since private
practice is where they make the big bucks.
She has, though, had some health issues to navigate and
McNally is correct in saying that the ADA’s are swamped and that he’s been
repeatedly denied requested help. That was in response to a letter by the
Republican majority on the county Legislature looking for answers regarding what
happened in the Halacy case - a legitimate request, and one that is infinitely more
substantial than patting the Hoosick Falls volleyball team on the back for
coming in third place.
McNally has had a tough go of things as DA, maybe even a tougher
than his two Republican predecessors … and that’s saying something.
While nobody suspected it at the time, his 2007 election was
brought into question during the 2009 voter fraud scandal. Former City Clerk
Bill McInerney testified to forging hundreds of absentee applications and
ballots in 2007 and 2009. And McInerney worked for McNally in 2007 when the
race went to the absentees.
Then, once taking office in 2008, he allowed a grand jury
hearing evidence regarding political extortion charges against Democratic Party
Chairman Tom Wade to expire without finishing the job by issuing an indictment
or a no bill. It just expired.
Then, according to court room testimony and his own
admission, McNally had a conversation with McInerney (photo to the right) about which attorney the
latter should hire after he was charged in the voter fraud scandal. That
conversation came after McNally recused himself. It was never pursued but it
smacks of a conflict of interest.
Then, McNally failed to recuse himself in a DWI case brought
against Wade’s daughter after Wade was instrumental in getting him elected in
2007 and again in 2011. The disposition of the case might not have been out of
the norm, but the appearance of impropriety is certainly ugly.
Now, we have a man who skates on charges of sexually
assaulting a 13 and a 14-year old girl.
One of the teen’s moms, obviously upset with how things
went, said she is out for some street justice. I can’t condone it, but I can’t
say I blame her either. She certainly didn’t get any justice here.
