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After An Appeals Court Reversed His Conviction, Ruben Wills Eyes A Comeback In Queens
By
Cindy Rodriguez
and
Brigid Bergin
Published Feb 24, 2021
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Official NYC Council Photo by William Alatriste
By
Cindy Rodriguez
and
Brigid Bergin
Published Feb 24, 2021
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Former City Councilmember Ruben Wills, who was convicted of fraud and grand larceny and served two years in prison, is eyeing a political comeback after a State Appeals Court reversed his conviction and returned the case to Queens Supreme Court.
His entrance would likely upend a race where the current City Councilmember Adrienne Adams is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. Wills has name recognition and a story of alleged injustice that could resonate with voters.
Adams, who has less than $40,000 in her bank account, according to campaign finance records, hasn’t responded yet to a request for comment.
Council District 28 includes the Queens neighborhoods of Jamaica, Richmond Hill, Rochdale Village and South Ozone Park. Wills, 49, was first elected in 2010. He went to prison in 2017 after a jury found he used public money awarded to his non-profit, as well as campaign finance matching funds, on personal expenses like a designer bag.
An Appeals Court ruling found that during his trial Wills was “deprived of his ‘right to present evidence by witnesses of [his] own choosing [which] is a fundamental ingredient of due process.’”
A spokesperson for Attorney General Letitia James said prosecutors have not decided yet whether or not to retry the case. Wills’s lawyer, Kevin O’Donnell, said his client had served his sentence and it wouldn’t be wise to spend public funds on an expensive second trial.
“Even if we went to trial and he was convicted the judge would give him the same sentence and he already served it,” said O’Donnell. “I am not sure the effort is worth the result and I certainly hope the Attorney General’s office sees it the way I do.”
The City Council passed a bill earlier this month that disqualifies people convicted of certain felonies, including those that involve public corruption, from running for public offices which the mayor is expected to sign into law on Wednesday. It will prevent other potential candidates, including former State Senator and City Councilmember Hiram Monserrate, from running for office -- but not Wills because his conviction was reversed.
He told Gothamist/WNYC that he thinks the law was designed to benefit those currently in power.
“I'm disappointed in, you know, people who profess to be progressive for the sake of carrying a progressive banner, but then turn around and pass a bill that stops people from having second chances just to protect the incumbency,” he said.
He also said his experience in prison has inspired him to reform criminal justice policies and what he described as “judicial indifference,” and improve conditions for those behind bars.
While in a work release program, Wills said he tested positive for a drug that is given to people who are addicted to opioids and was sent back to Sing Sing. It was later revealed that thousands of state prisoners were subjected to faulty drug tests. Wills said he was one of those individuals.
“I think that my purpose, the reason I went through this is to make sure this is highlighted. I don't represent Ruben Wills,” he said. “I represent two or three hundred thousand young men that look like me, that have gone through these doors of the halls of injustice every single day for the past, I don’t know how many years.”
During his tenure on the City Council, Wills had a reputation for being excessively absent. Politico New York filed a Freedom of Information Law Request and found that in fiscal year 2016, he was present at work only 28% of the time. Wills said at the time he was suffering from health problems that are no longer an issue.
“There’s no issues with my health that would prevent me from doing anything,” Wills said. “I've made great strides or improvement in physical health.”
If he decides to run for his old Council seat, Wills must collect a minimum of 270 valid petition signatures by March 25th; candidates will begin collecting petitions next week.
Tagged
ruben wills
election 2021
Cindy Rodriguez
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Brigid Bergin
Brigid Bergin is an award-winning senior reporter on the People and Power desk. She is fiercely committed to telling stories that help people engage and support democracy. In 2022, she hosted a live, ten-week call-in politics show ahead of the midterm elections called The People's Guide to Power. Brigid's reporting in 2017 included some of the first coverage of a political newcomer now known as AOC. In 2016, she broke the news of a voter purge in Brooklyn just days before New York’s presidential primary, triggering city, state and federal investigations. Brigid also guest hosts The Brian Lehrer Show and All Of It. She graduated from the University at Albany and the CUNY Newmark School of Journalism. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 917-723-4719.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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