GOTTI TRIAL ROUND 2

United States Vs John Gotti, May 13th 1986.
Under The RICO Act. (Racketeer influenced corrupt organizations act.)

All across America the FBI were putting together big RICO cases against the bosses of the Mafia. After the success of the much-publicized Commission case the justice department now knew that they had a big weapon in the fight against the mob. After the convictions came down on the leaders of the Mafia in the commission case, the FBI were going after the bosses venomously and with good success, but John Gotti and his lawyer Bruce Cutler would be a different story.

The prosecution was led by Diane Giacalone, who wanted Gotti's blood so bad it was clearly visible to the jurors, her passion in the get Gotti campaign would be used against her as part of the bullish Bruce Cutler's counter offensive. Things looked good for Giacalone early on in the trial when she scored a big victory when she managed to get Gotti's bail revoked, a motion that was vehemently detested by Bruce Cutler. So things looked good early on with Gotti locked up in the Metropolitan Correctional Center (the MCC), but most of Giacalones evidence was built around witnesses that had bargained for their lives.

Bruce Cutler was ready for this as he skilfully and aggressively tore into the credibility of each witness destroying each and every one of them who took the stand to testify against Gotti. Cutler made a mockery of Giacalones prosecution as he literally badgered each witness into confessing their previous crimes, crimes of which stunned the jury, and turned them against the prosecution that Giacalone had thrown together. First to take the stand was James Cardinalli, heroin dealer and 5 times confessed murderer. Salvatore Pollisi was next, bank robber, heroin dealer; Cutler had no problem with him. Dominick Lofaro, gambler, confessed murderer another one that looked stupid on the stand, at one point in the proceedings Cutler actually made Lofarro admit that Gotti was one of the finest men he had ever met. And last but not least was Matthew Traynor, heroin trafficker, bank robber and convicted perjurer. All these convictions were admitted in front of the jury, as each witness had played right into the hands of a supremely confident, Bruce Cutler.

By now Giacalones prosecution was in tatters, no prosecution left, and no cards to play. But Cutler wasn't through yet. Her enthusiasm to convict Gotti was used by Cutler, he made the assumptions to the jury that Giacalone just didn't like Gotti and preceded to harass him hence the type of witnesses she used. At one point after Cutler had finished destroying the credibility of the witnesses, he attempted to discredit her by suggesting how desperate she was to go to such lengths to use criminals instead of more credible witnesses.

By this time the case was done and dusted, Cutler had won this case easily. If someone had kept a scorecard it would have been 10 - 0 to Cutler. Cutler's style was well liked by Gotti, he was flamboyant, loud and abrasive he had too much for Giacalone. During the summations he amused the defense further by slam dunking the RICO affidavit in the trash can saying that it was wretched and it made you want to vomit. March 13th 1987, as bosses all around the America was falling victim thanks to the RICO statute, John Gotti walked free from court, a not guilty verdict had been approved by the jury and the so called dapper don would now be known as the Teflon don, for the second time on the trot the government had again failed in their attempt to get John Gotti.

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