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NY Judges Officially Bounced From Bench Mr. Gross, who sat in Nassau County, pleaded guilty last year in federal court and was sentenced to 33 months in prison by Eastern District Judge Arthur D. Spatt. Mr. Gross had been suspended with pay since his arrest in September 2005 for laundering money through an undercover federal agent posing as a confederate of an organized crime figure. The Court of Appeals decided soon after Mr. Gross' arrest that he should be paid during his suspension because the crime he was accused of did not concern official duties. Yesterday, the Court ruled unanimously in a motion that it was removing Mr. Gross pursuant to Article VI, §22(f) of the state Constitution and Judiciary Law §44(8). Also yesterday, the Commission on Judicial Conduct announced that Dennis LaBombard, justice of Ellenburg Town Court in Clinton County has been removed under a March 13 order from the Court of Appeals. While Mr. LaBombard requested Court review of a December removal recommendation from the commission, he subsequently did not pursue his appeal with the Court, the commission said. Mr. LaBombard, a non-lawyer, was removed for presiding over cases in which his step-grandchildren were defendants and for interceding with another judge in a case in which his step-grandchildren were defendants. "Fantasy
Life" Fiasco: Ex-NY Judge New York Lawyer A former Nassau County judge who admitted to laundering money for
mobsters and dealing in "stolen" diamonds was sentenced Friday to 33
months in prison. Campaign Warchest By Tom Perrotta Former Nassau County Judge David A. Gross has pleaded guilty to conspiring to launder more than $400,000 and faces 20 years in prison. Mr. Gross, 45, admitted his guilt on Friday before Magistrate Judge William D. Wall, who sits in the Eastern District courthouse in Central Islip. Mr. Gross was running for re-election in 2005 when a member of the Genovese crime family named Nicholas A. Gruttadauria, a co-defendant of Mr. Gross, introduced to the judge an undercover FBI agent posing as a trafficker of stolen jewelry. The judge and a third defendant, the owner of a restaurant in Freeport, agreed to launder money and sell more than $280,000 in stolen jewelry. The judge even offered to use his campaign fund as part of the scheme. "[T]he whole point is to make it look legitimate," he allegedly told the agent. Mr. Gross was first elected to the Nassau County District Court in 1999. He was arrested in August 2005 and subsequently suspended from the bench (he was not re-elected). Mr. Gross is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 26. Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Mizkiewicz, Cynthia M. Monaco and Richard Lunger are prosecuting the case. NY Judge Pleads Not Guilty to Federal Charges By Andrew Harris Nassau District Judge David A. Gross pleaded not guilty in Central Islip federal court Friday to charges of money laundering and conspiracy to receive and dispose of stolen merchandise. Dressed in a gray, pinstriped suit and seated at the defense table with four other criminal defendants and their counsel, the judge appeared tired and allowed his attorney, John F. Carman of Garden City, to enter the plea for him. On the District Court bench since 1999, Judge Gross and more than a dozen others were arrested Aug. 30 at the culmination of a two-year government sting operation. Prosecutors on Friday unsealed a six-count grand jury indictment. Named in just two of the counts, the judge is alleged to have "caused the sale of" $7,500 in stolen diamonds and then of having worked with other defendants, including Freeport restaurateur Kim Brady Land, to obscure the source of the proceeds. Magistrate Judge William Wall presided over the arraignment. Outside the courtroom, Mr. Carman said that while the government claimed to have voluminous evidence, he expected that much of it would be "subject to multiple interpretations." Assistant U.S. Attorney James Miskiewicz is leading the prosecution. Mob' Judge Demands to Be Paid By Kieran Crowley The Long Island judge accused of moonlighting as a mob money launderer has asked to receive his paychecks while awaiting trial —— cause judges aren't allowed to hold second jobs. A lawyer for Nassau District Court Judge David Gross wrote a letter to the Court of Appeals, asking that Gross's $122,700 yearly salary not be cut off because it is his family's only income. The lawyer, John Carman, wrote that the arrested jurist is the father of two children and that the judge's wife, Jennifer, is a housewife who does not have a job. "Judges aren't permitted to pursue employment outside of their responsibilities as judges," Carman explained. Gross was arrested on Aug. 30 by federal agents, who also busted several reputed Genovese crime family members with nicknames like "Joe Box," "Beaver" and "Mousey," according to court papers. An undercover agent was allegedly introduced to Gross —— who offered to fence diamonds in an illegal scheme, authorities charge. The undercover agent allegedly caught Gross on tape demanding a paltry $500 fee for his services. Mob' Judge Demands to Be Paid By Kieran Crowley The Long Island judge accused of moonlighting as a mob money launderer has asked to receive his paychecks while awaiting trial cause judges aren't allowed to hold second jobs. A lawyer for Nassau District Court Judge David Gross wrote a letter to the Court of Appeals, asking that Gross's $122,700 yearly salary not be cut off because it is his family's only income. The lawyer, John Carman, wrote that the arrested jurist is the father of two children and that the judge's wife, Jennifer, is a housewife who does not have a job. "Judges aren't permitted to pursue employment outside of their responsibilities as judges," Carman explained. Gross was arrested on Aug. 30 by federal agents, who also busted several reputed Genovese crime family members with nicknames like "Joe Box," "Beaver" and "Mousey," according to court papers. An undercover agent was allegedly introduced to Gross who offered to fence diamonds in an illegal scheme, authorities charge. The undercover agent allegedly caught Gross on tape demanding a paltry $500 fee for his services. Suspended Judge Hopes to Keep Getting Paid During His Trial By Andrew Harris Mr. Carman declined to be
interviewed for this article. Mr. Barbuto said he called
the judge on the night of his arraignment to offer words of support,
but the lawyer declined to say how Judge Gross responded. Justice for Gall By Devin Smith and Bill
Sanderson The Nassau County judge who allegedly laundered money for the mob and bragged of knowing how to bend campaign-finance rules is still running for re-election, his campaign treasurer said yesterday. David A. Gross, who faces up to 25 years in prison on charges of money laundering and conspiring to sell stolen goods, is free on $500,000 bond after putting up his Long Beach house. Campaign-finance records show he has $35,259.67 in his war chest for his next race. "He's not backing down. He's running for re-election," said the treasurer, Corey Steinbock, who spoke to Gross hours after his Tuesday night arrest. The judge has ambitions beyond Nassau District Court, which mainly hears small-claims cases, civil cases involving less than $15,000, and minor criminal matters. "The man has been working his ass off to go to the Supreme Court," said Steinbock. "I don't believe any of these things that are in the paper and all these allegations." When he first ran in 1999, Gross took a $150 campaign contribution from Nicholas Gruttadauria, an alleged Genovese mobster who is one of the co-defendants in the money-laundering and stolen-property cases, sources said. Gross was suspended after his arrest. It'll be up to the state Court of Appeals to decide whether to revoke his pay during his suspension, or remove him from the bench entirely. Nothing bars him from seeking re-election. "Why should he not run?" said a Long Beach neighbor and family pal, Lisa Milillo. "He has a right to trial by jury. I hope the real truth comes out." But another neighbor complained that Gross and his wife used to shower nude in the backyard "from May to September." "They didn't care who saw them," the neighbor said. "That's why it was so shocking when he got elected. It's not criminal, his behavior, but it's not moral, either." Jack Mevorach who said he attended a fund-raiser for the judge at Cafe by the Sea, the Freeport restaurant through which Gross allegedly laundered money for an undercover FBI agent isn't sure he can support him anymore. "Violation of the public trust is a sin," said Mevorach, who gave $100 to Gross' campaign this year. "I understand they have him on tape I just feel really disappointed." But most who know Gross were ready to cut him a break. "He's a fine judge. He always treated the lawyers with decency," said Lou Agresta, a criminal defense lawyer. Additional reporting by Zach Haberman and John Doyle L.I. Judge Stayed Mum on Mob Richard Weir and John
Marzulli He cudda fessed up. Reputed Mafia judge David Gross was given a chance to come clean before his arrest, the Daily News has learned. But law enforcement sources said the Nassau County district judge turned down the offer from feds, who are now delving into his ties to a mobbed-up union that endorsed him for reelection. Gross, 43, was arrested Tuesday at his Long Beach, L.I., home, charged with laundering stolen gems and cash for the Genovese crime family. Sources said that prosecutors gave Gross a taste of the evidence against him - giving him a chance to cooperate and spill his guts about his mob ties and what he might know about other corrupt officials. Gross refused to cooperate, the sources said. He was charged with conspiring with Genovese soldier Nicholas (Beaver) Gruttadauria in a scheme exposed by an undercover FBI agent. He was arraigned in federal court in Central Islip and freed on $500,000 bond; he has been suspended from the bench. Now Brooklyn federal prosecutors are probing just how deep the Genovese family has its hooks into Gross, sources said. At issue is his endorsement by the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners Union, a group long tied to the mob. A 2004 labor racketeering indictment filed in Manhattan Federal Court accuses reputed Genovese capo Louis Moscatiello Sr. of supervising the crime family's control over the carpenters union, despite a government consent decree ordering the union to steer clear of the mob. Judge Is Charged in Money-Laundering Case By William Rashbaum A Nassau County judge who is running for re-election in November was arraigned yesterday on federal money-laundering charges along with three men whom prosecutors described as mob figures. The judge, David A. Gross, was secretly taped by the Federal Bureau of Investigation offering to use his campaign accounts to wash dirty money, but he quickly withdrew that offer, made to an undercover F.B.I. agent. He apparently realized that large sums flowing into his re-election fund would attract too much attention, according to an affidavit outlining the sting operation. It was unsealed yesterday in United States District Court in Central Islip, N.Y. The affidavit, which also accuses a Long Island restaurateur and 10 other men of gambling and other crimes, charges that Judge Gross helped launder $130,000 through a Freeport, N.Y., restaurant called Cafe-by-the-Sea - money that the undercover agent indicated was the proceeds of crimes - and helped sell diamonds and other jewelry that the agent said were stolen. Judge Gross, 43, a Democrat who was first elected to District Court in Hempstead in 1999, was suspended from the bench yesterday because of his arrest. His tenure had been largely unremarkable, although he did write and self-publish a book, "If the Robes Fit...: A View from the Bench." The cover shows him grinning in his robes before an American flag and shelves of law books, swinging a gavel into his open palm. The judge's Web site describes him as "Our Law & Order Judge," and, according to the site, he is rated as well qualified by the Nassau County Bar Association, with a variety of political and labor endorsements, including one from the state Fraternal Order of Police. Before his arrest, Judge Gross's chief claim to fame was his role in presiding over a drunken driving case against the father of the actress Lindsay Lohan. And in 2000, a neighbor called the police saying that the judge was showering naked with his children in his backyard. The judge sprayed a responding officer with his garden hose. The federal affidavit includes transcripts of recordings of conversations between Judge Gross and the undercover agent, who posed as an international criminal trafficking in stolen diamonds. According to the transcripts, Judge Gross talked about trafficking in untaxed cigarettes and gasoline, using car sales to launder money and seeking to help the agent find a buyer for what he indicated were stolen gems. Judge Gross took thousands of dollars worth of checks from the undercover agent as part of the laundering scheme, and at one point gave him a copy of his book inscribing it, "Thanks for being my friend," according to the affidavit. This marks the first time in 15 years that a state judge has been charged in federal court, the last being Justice William T. Martin of State Supreme Court in the Bronx. Justice Martin was convicted of tax evasion and cocaine possession. Judge Gross's lawyer, John Carman, declined to comment on the charges. The arrests were announced yesterday by Mark J. Mershon, an assistant F.B.I. director, and Roslynn R. Mauskopf, the United States attorney in Brooklyn. "It boils the blood and chills the spine to see a sitting judge in the midst of a mob-directed money-laundering conspiracy," Mr. Mershon said. The arrests arose from a two-and-a-half-year gambling investigation by the F.B.I. and Brooklyn federal prosecutors that took a dramatic turn in late January when one of the organized crime figures, Nicholas Michael Gruttadauria, 62, identified as a soldier in the Genovese crime family, unwittingly introduced the judge to the undercover F.B.I. agent, according to the affidavit. Judge Gross, whose cellular telephone was later monitored by a court-ordered wiretap, and Mr. Gruttadauria had known each other for several years, and their wives are close friends, according to two law enforcement officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because federal authorities do not permit them to discuss matters that are not included in court papers. During the course of the investigation, Mr. Gruttadauria was picked up on another wiretap talking about dining with the judge and an acting captain in the Genovese crime family at the Parkside Restaurant in Queens. The restaurant is owned by Anthony Federici, a man federal authorities have identified as a Genovese family captain and Mr. Gruttadauria's mob supervisor, one of the officials said. Mr. Gruttadauria introduced the judge to the undercover agent, over dinner Jan. 27 at the Garden City Hotel in Garden City, N.Y., the affidavit said. That dinner was followed by two more meetings involving the judge and the undercover agent over the next two days in the agent's room at the hotel, which a law enforcement official said were secretly videotaped and tape recorded. Mr. Gruttadauria attended the first meeting, but not the second. At the second session, the conversation eventually turned to the judge's possible assistance in laundering money from what the agent said was a stolen diamond scheme. Judge Gross proposed a plan under which the undercover agent would pose as a political consultant and fund-raiser, according to the affidavit. The illicit money from the diamond scheme would be deposited in Judge Gross's campaign fund account, disguised as contributions, and the judge would write a check to the undercover agent purporting to be payment for his services, the affidavit said. For this service, the agent would be charged a laundering fee that the two men would negotiate. "The whole point," the judge said, according to the affidavit, "is to make it look legitimate." Later, though, the judge seemed to see a flaw in his own proposal, noting that the diamond scheme proceeds - disguised as bogus contributions - would have to be publicly reported by his campaign. The judge told the undercover agent that people looking at the records would be stunned and ask "who is this guy that can raise this kind of money, and everyone else will come and try to hire you."The undercover agent, and then laughed, according to the affidavit. Eventually, most of the money was laundered through the Freeport restaurant of Kim Brady Land, who was also charged in the case, and the judge received a $500 finder's fee, and a 15 percent fee for part of the money, according to the affidavit. Judge Gross's suspension, ordered yesterday by the chief administrative judge of the state, Jonathan Lippman, will remain in effect pending further action by the New York State Court of Appeals, said David Bookstaver, a spokesman for the State Office of Court Administration. Wearing tan slacks and a blue shirt, Judge Gross was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Arlene Lindsay in Central Islip, along with Mr. Gruttadauria and the other defendants. Judge Lindsay released Judge Gross on $500,000 bond, secured by his house in Long Beach, N.Y. He was ordered to surrender his passport and a pistol, for which he has a concealed weapon permit, and limited his travel to Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island. Janon Fisher contributed reporting for this article. Judge All Wa$hed Up By Devin Smith and Bill
Sanderson An eccentric Long Island judge, reviled for showering naked in his yard, was snared in a mob sting yesterday after he allegedly helped fence hot jewelry and used his campaign war-chest to wash "dirty" cash for the Genovese crime family, federal authorities said. Judge David A. Gross, who oversees criminal and civil cases in Nassau District Court, faces 25 years in prison after allegedly being caught on FBI tape acting more like a petty thug from a "Miami Vice" episode than a respected jurist. Gross was snared in the federal mob sting after he bragged of his underworld ties to an undercover agent who was probing several Genovese mob heavies, and then helped fence thousands of dollars in diamonds and watches, the FBI said. He also allegedly helped launder $130,000 in "dirty" money provided by the agent through a restaurant, Caféé-By-The-Sea in Freeport, and through his election campaign fund, the feds said. Gross, 43, was arrested at his home in Long Beach yesterday and did not speak when he entered a not guilty plea at his arraignment in federal court in Central Islip. He was freed on $500,000 bond backed by his home. Fourteen others were also arrested after the 21/2-year probe, which focused on a Genovese video gambling operation in Nassau and Suffolk counties. Such silence was unusual for a judge known for loony behavior like showering in the nude with his young children in his backyard and for writing a book of courtroom anecdotes. "It boils the blood and chills the spine to see a sitting judge in the midst of a mob-directed money-laundering conspiracy," said Mark Mershon, director of the FBI's New York office. The undercover agent met Gross in January, when the legal eagle unexpectedly showed up at a restaurant in the Garden City Hotel to break bread with the agent and reputed Genovese mob soldier Nicholas Gruttadauria. Gruttadauria, who was also charged in the scheme, referred to Gross as "The Judge," according to an FBI affidavit. "The Judge" showed up 45 minutes late for the alleged underworld sitdown, and explained that he was tardy because he had been at a campaign fund-raiser. "After Gross seated himself at the table with [Gruttadadria, some of his associates and the undercover agent] the conversation at the table at first covered a range of pleasantries," the affidavit said. It noted that the judge asked the undercover what business he was into. The agent replied "import-export." Soon after the "pleasantries" were dispensed with, the attention-seeking bench jockey got himself into trouble with his big mouth by bragging about his skill in bending campaign finance rules, the feds said. "Shortly thereafter, Gross said that before becoming an attorney, he had wanted to become a businessman and recounted how, as a youth, he was a master of the board game 'Monopoly,' because he knew the intricate rules of the game," the report said. "Gross stated that he used the same devotion to mastering 'rules' when he became an attorney," he said, allegedly implying that laundering money through his re-election campaign would be no problem despite campaign finance laws. "I know those rules," he said, according to the affidavit. "I know how to get around those rules . . . You know, so cash is not a problem." Gross then ended the dinner with some unlikely gangland bravado by shadily telling the undercover agent that he knew people in "the diamond business." The next day, the undercover offered him a finder's fee if he could find a buyer for 19 "untraceable" and "unmarked" diamonds. Gross later told the FBI agent that he knew a guy called "Jesse the Jeweler," who could unload the hot rocks. Gross later took 24 diamonds and 10 watches from the agent and allegedly sold them for $7,500. He then passed the cash back to the agent, the FBI reported. He later helped launder the $130,000, authorities said. He has not been charged with using his position as judge in any illicit scheme. "The Judge" seemed to neighbors hardly capable of such activity, though he did shock some with his nudist ways. A neighbor, upset about the showers, called cops in 2000 after seeing Gross nude with his 19- month-old daughter and 2-year-old son. When a cop approached the yard, Gross fired a garden hose at him. "They are truly exhibitionists. They enjoy shocking people," one former neighbor said of Gross and his wife yesterday. The couple had no curtains on any of their windows, the former neighbor said. "They're strange," the neighbor said. "Lately the judge has been trying to reinvent himself. He's trimmed down a bit, he's joined the gym in order to get re-elected." Only one neighbor yesterday leaped to the defense of the gavel-flashing jurist, saying that he was nutty but nice. "It's totally irrelevant what somebody does in their own home, he's an extreme individual, but you can't judge him for that," said Denise Collins, 48. "People just want to criminalize him for that. There's not a bad bone in his body. He's almost good to the point of being goofy." In June, he self-published a book, "If the Robes Fit: A View from the Bench." "I for one could not imagine ever getting bored in the courtroom," Gross wrote. "The drama, the unpredictability, the human interest, the surprises, and most importantly, the importance of the matters to the parties that come before the court are more than enough to hold my attention." In other parts of the book he humorously recounts some of the "drama" and "unpredictability" of courtroom life. In one passage Gross recalls a diminutive man charged with a road rage assault who shouted angrily at him after he ordered him to an anger management class. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, the courtroom burst out with laughter when another defendant a huge prisoner in an orange jump suit said, "Yo man, I think you really do need that anger management course." Gross allegedly offered the undercover agent an autographed copy to show his gratitude for the money he'd made laundering the FBI cash and diamonds, "Thanks for being my friend, David Gross," the inscription said. Gross also has a Web site that includes photos of himself with judicial dignitaries and Sen. Hillary Clinton and the texts of what he deems his most interesting decisions. Upon his arrest yesterday, Gross was immediately suspended from his job with pay. The state Court of Appeals will ultimately decide whether to revoke his pay while his case is pending, or remove him from the bench entirely. Long Island Judge Arrested for Money Laundering, Fencing By Anthony Lin A Long Island judge has been arrested and charged by federal prosecutors with participating in a money laundering and fencing scheme with a suspected organized crime associate. According to a 71-page complaint unsealed yesterday by the Eastern District U.S. Attorney's Office, Nassau County District Court Judge David Gross helped an undercover Federal Bureau of Investigation agent posing as a stolen diamond trafficker unload merchandise as well as launder about $130,000 in illicit funds. Judge Gross allegedly explained to the agent several means of laundering the funds, including through the judge's campaign fund. "[T]he whole point is to make it look legitimate," he allegedly told the agent. In a statement announcing the arrests, Eastern District U.S. Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf said: "The corrupting influence of organized crime has reached new heights in this case with the involvement of a sitting judge in mob-related money laundering." Judge Gross, 43, who was elected to the bench in 1999, faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on the money laundering charge and up to 5 years for conspiracy to sell stolen merchandise. At his arraignment yesterday in Central Islip before Eastern District Magistrate Judge Arlene Lindsay, Judge Gross pleaded not guilty. He was released on $500,000 bail after surrending his passport and gun permit. His travel was restricted to the Eastern District. Judge Gross was represented in the arraignment by Garden City lawyer John Carman. The prosecution will be led by assistant U.S. attorneys James Miskiewicz and Cynthia Monaco. David Bookstaver, a spokesman for the state Office of Court Administration, said yesterday that Judge Gross had been administratively suspended pending further findings by the Court of Appeals. Unlike the recent scandal involving Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Gerald Garson, who is facing bribery charges, the case against Judge Gross does not allege he directly used his position as a judge to further his criminal activities. But the case will no doubt fuel concerns about judicial screening and selection. The judge came under FBI scrutiny in the course of an investigation of illegal gambling clubs on Long Island allegedly owned by three men believed to be associates of the Genovese crime family -- Nicholas Gruttadauria, Ronald Pecoraro and Joseph Rutigliano. The trio and 11 others also were arrested and charged yesterday, mostly in connection with illegal gambling clubs. All pleaded not guilty yesterday and were remanded. As a county district court judge, Judge Gross was responsible for civil cases involving less than $15,000, low-level felony and misdemeanor cases and landlord-tenant disputes. A 1987 graduate of Yeshiva University's Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, he worked as a lawyer in the insurance industry and as a solo practitioner before becoming a judge. Elected to a six-year term, the Democrat was up for re-election in November. He is married and has two children. According to federal prosecutors, the meetings and conversations among the defendants and with the undercover FBI agent were extensively recorded or videotaped. U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert authorized a wiretap of Judge Gross' cell phone in July. The undercover agent allegedly first met the judge in January 2005 at a dinner at which Messrs. Gruttadauria and Pecoraro were also present. Later that month, after the agent showed Mr. Gruttadauria a packet of 19 loose diamonds that he described as "untraceable," Mr. Gruttadauria contacted the judge. The judge allegedly offered to help unload the diamonds in exchange for a $500 finder's fee. He also told the FBI agent of other criminal activity he was involved in, including the distribution of untaxed cigarettes and the evasion of gasoline excise taxes. According to the complaint, the judge then moved on to discuss means by which the agent could launder money from the sale of his diamonds. Judge Gross allegedly suggested the agent pose as a campaign fund-raiser, in which guise he would deposit money in the judge's re-election fund. The judge would then write checks to the agent from the fund, purportedly as payment for his service as a fund-raiser. Money-Laundering Scheme But the judge was allegedly quick to see a flaw in that plan. "What's gonna happen is they're gonna say holy shit, who is this guy that can raise this kind of money and everyone else will come and try to hire you," Judge Gross allegedly told the agent. The judge then allegedly suggested the agent pay for a fake party supposedly thrown at a restaurant called Cafe by the Sea, owned by another defendant, Kim Brady Land. After receiving payment, Mr. Land would then write checks to accounts controlled by the agent as purported payment for fund-raising expenses. Judge Gross also allegedly suggested that money could be laundered through the purchase of an expensive car. "Now the auto business is, um, very well renowned as not only, you know, uh, [for] auto sales, but also as a laundromat," Judge Gross allegedly told the undercover agent. Mr. Gruttadauria later decided only Mr. Land's restaurant would be used for laundering money. He, the judge and Mr. Land all received a share of the laundering commission, which ranged from 15 percent to 20 percent. The complaint notes the arrangement created incentives among the defendants to cheat each other. The complaint claims Mr. Land arranged separate money laundering transactions with the FBI agent so he would not have to share the commission. In a July conversation with the FBI agent cited in the complaint, Judge Gross also appears hesitant to share with Mr. Gruttadauria the full amount to be laundered in another transaction. Between February and August 2005, the FBI agent provided the three men with $130,000 to launder, receiving in return phony invoices for party expenses and funds wired to his designated accounts, minus the laundering commissions. At the same time, Mr. Gruttadauria and Judge Gross both helped the FBI agent sell thousands of dollars' worth of diamonds to contacts in the jewelry business, transactions on which the two also received a commission. The judge maintains a Web site listing his endorsements by Nassau County Democratic Party, the state Fraternal Order of Police and various unions. Party chairman Jay Jacobs could not be reached for comment yesterday. Book Author Judge Gross is also the author of a recently self-published book about his experiences as a judge. "If the Robe Fits . . . : A View from the Bench" contains one passage in which the judge describes arraigning on vehicle and traffic charges a reputed mob hit man. "When I first saw his name on my calendar that morning, the hairs on my neck stood up," the judge wrote, adding: "there was something about him that was pure menace." In a recent interview about the book with the Law Journal, Judge Gross said: "I have no secrets. I am who I am." According to the complaint, Judge Gross insisted at a meeting earlier this month on giving a signed copy of the book to the undercover FBI agent "as thanks for the fees he had obtained during the money laundering operation." As the judge retrieved the book from his car, the agent noticed $40,000 stored in the trunk. The judge then allegedly reassured the agent the car was safe, noting that the judge's license plate meant the car would probably not be pulled over by the police. L.I. Judge in FBI Mob Sting By Tara Conry and John Marzulli Long Island's self-proclaimed "law and order judge" found himself on the other side of the law yesterday - charged with peddling stolen diamonds and laundering $130,000 in cash for the Genovese crime family. Federal prosecutors said David Gross, 43, was caught red-handed in an FBI sting, and detailed the Nassau County judge's downfall in shocking detail in a 71-page affidavit unsealed in federal court in Central Islip. "It boils the blood and chills the spine to see a sitting judge in the midst of a mob-directed money-laundering conspiracy," said Assistant FBI Director Mark Mershon. The feds said Gross, a Democrat who is running for reelection, was a big fish hooked unexpectedly in a probe of illegal L.I. gambling. Sporting gavel cufflinks, Gross declined comment after his arraignment on charges of conspiring to launder money and receive and dispose of stolen merchandise. He was released on $500,000 bond and has been suspended from the bench, a state court spokesman said. If convicted, he could get up to 20 years in prison. Elected to district court in 1999, Gross handled civil and criminal cases, including the arraignment last Sunday of a 26-year-old man charged in the brutal murder of his doctor father. Recently, Gross self-published a book called, "If the Robes Fit ... A View from the Bench," where he writes in the introduction: "My first year on the district court bench confirms what I suspected when I was a lawyer - you don't have to be a genius to be a good judge." On his campaign Web site, he poses next to Sen. Hillary Clinton and calls himself the "law and order judge." There is no mention of a 2000 incident when he made headlines for showering nude in public. Authorities first learned of his criminal associations from a reputed Genovese soldier, Nicholas (Beaver) Gruttadauria, who told an undercover FBI agent that he had dined with "the judge" at mobbed-up Parkside Restaurant in Corona, Queens. Later, Gruttadauria introduced the agent to Gross in a bugged suite at the posh Garden City Hotel, where the agent offered the judge a finder's fee to help move some hot rocks. According to FBI agent Thomas Holmes, Gross readily offered the services of a crony named "Jesse the Jeweler." He also suggested laundering the illicit proceeds from the gem sales through the owner of a Freeport, L.I., seafood restaurant, who would fake invoices for catered fund-raising parties. "Who's to say otherwise? That's an easy wash," Gross allegedly said. Gruttadauria, 62, and 13 others were ordered held without bail on money laundering and gambling charges. |
