Dear Supporters of Sinha Family:
Namaste. I have not been in touch with you for a little over six months. The reason for this is the slow pace at which the wheels of justice move. There have been several meetings, attempts for plea bargains and postponement of dates over last six months.
Dr. Divyendu Sinha
What has happened is the decision of the courts to give priority to cases where the defendants are in prison awaiting trial for a long time. We are told that there are under-trials in custody who are waiting since 2009. In our case, all five defendants are out on bail, so our case got pushed back. Aligning calendars of five defense lawyers, the Assistant Public Prosecutor and the presiding judge has been another challenge. We had meetings on 9/27/11, 11/4/11 and 1/30/12.
- Steven K. Contreras Hassen I. Abdellah
- Christopher Conway Steve Altman
- Julian C. Daley Mitche
ll Ansell - Cash Q. Johnson William Fetky
- Christian M.Tinli John J. Koufos
Steven Contreras Christopher Conway
Julian Daley C
Atty.William Fetky Atty.Mitchell Ansell Atty. John Koufos
Steve Altman, the attorney for Mr. Conway had filed a motion indicating that he was going to engage a neuro-radiologist to review the medical reports of the two hospitals where Dr. Sinha was treated. The judge had set 8/22/11 for a report on the progress. However, later on Mr. Altman decided not to use nuero-radiologist’s observations.
The Assistant Public Prosecutor, Mr. Christopher Kuberiet had offered a plea bargain first to Mr. Cash Johnson and then to Steven Contreras but they did not accept it.
Alkabahen, Nikhilbhai Muzumdar and I met with Shree Rajiv Parikh, a Bharatiya attorney who has been a big help in providing guidance and advice at no cost. That two hour meeting took place on 12/13/11. He drew a road map of how the trial might proceed, road blocks, possible defense strategy, matching of expectations with reality of the justice system, expected outcome, etc.
Judge Bradley FerenczThe latest hearing was on Monday, January 30, 2012. In a previous hearing the judge had fixed February 22 for the start of trial of Steven Contreras; however, in the hearing on 1/30, we were informed that the date had been changed to April 10, 2012 due to non availability of Steven Contrera’s attorney.
We will update you with the time and location of trial on April 10, 2012 when that date comes closer and we have further information. We ask the community to stay engaged and not forget that one of our bright community members was murdered for no reason and tomorrow, it could be any one of us. We could be effective as a community only if we band and stay together till justice is secured for Mrs. Alka Sinha and her children. Our request is for you to attend the trial in maximum numbers and encourage your friends to do so to show support. If you take a day or more off from work, it would be in the service of the community and Sinha family. We also want to thank several community members who have kept enquiring about the progress of the case in last six months.
Gaurang G. Vaishnav
Indian American Defense League (IADL)
Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America (VHPA)
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