• Filed under , Criminal Defense

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A State Supreme Court Justice today ordered a hearing into allegations that our firm made in a post-judgment or “440” motion to vacate our client’s murder conviction because of an inappropriate, secret meeting between another judge’s law clerk and “local” counsel for our client, Gregory Thayer, in Ulster County, New York.  During the meeting, our court papers allege, the law clerk revealed to the lawyer that Mr. Thayer would be better off not waiving a jury trial and having his case decided just by the judge, essentially because the judge was not receptive to Mr. Thayer’s temporary insanity defense.  However, the law clerk swore the local counsel to secrecy and counsel did not inform Mr. Thayer or his principal attorney, Robert C. Gottlieb, of the conversation until after the trial, at which the judge convicted Mr. Thayer of manslaughter.  The hearing will be held May 7, 2024, in Kingston, NY.  News articles about the court’s ruling appeared in the New York Law Journal, here, and Law360, here.