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Queens Councilman's Rape Indictment Dismissed
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 24, 2008
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 24, 2008
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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Queens City Councilman Dennis Gallagher, whose office was raided last July after rape allegations and was indicted by a grand jury in August, is smiling - for now. A judge dismissed the indictment, believing the defense's claim that the "grand jury process was compromised." The jurors had complained the prosecutors were trying to make Gallagher look "foolish."
Gallagher, who is married, admitted he had an affair with the 52-year-old accuser but said it was consensual; he also submitted a DNA sample. His lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said, "We maintained the integrity of the grand jury proceedings were severely impaired by, among other things, the improper questioning of Councilman Gallagher. Judge Roman agreed completely and to her credit and to the credit of her personal integrity and intellectual honestly, she dismissed all the charges.”
After the indictment, Gallagher had to resign his position as the minority whip in the City Council and stepped down from the committees he served on. However, the judge said the Queens DA's office could re-present the evidence to another grand jury. Queens DA Richard Brown signaled that his office will start round 2: "As the court noted in its decision, the 'testimony and evidence presented to the grand jury was legally sufficient to support each and every one of the counts charged.' Accordingly, the matter will be re-presented to another grand jury before which the defendant can once again, if he be so advised, testify."
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benjamin brafman
city
City Council
City Councilman
DA Richard Brown
Dennis Gallagher
grand jury
indictment
indictment dismissed
queens
queens da
Queens DA Richard Brown
rape charges
richard brown
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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