03012019 - News Article - Convicted Portage mayor claims prosecutors threatened witnesses; requests new trial

Convicted Portage mayor claims prosecutors threatened witnesses; requests new trial
NWI Times
March 01, 2019
https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/convicted-portage-mayor-claims-prosecutors-threatened-witnesses-requests-new-trial/article_c40b2dee-4d9e-52de-9245-7e1a7b069f6e.html

HAMMOND — Convicted former Portage Mayor James Snyder is seeking a new trial, saying prosecutors threatened key witnesses in his case.

In documents filed late Thursday in U.S. District Court, Snyder's attorneys contend Assistant U.S. Attorney Jill Koster committed prosecutorial misconduct by threatening Steve and Bob Buha, causing them to take the Fifth Amendment and not testify on Snyder's behalf.

Snyder, who was in his second term as Portage's mayor, was convicted Feb. 14 on felony counts of bribery involving taking a $13,000 bribe from the Buhas and their former business, Great Lakes Peterbilt, in exchange for awarding them $1.25 million in garbage truck bids and obstructing the IRS in their efforts to collect back personal income and business payroll taxes.

Snyder was acquitted of a third charge, which alleged he accepted a $12,000 bribe from former co-defendant John Cortina in exchange for putting Cortina and his partner on the city's tow list. Cortina pleaded guilty to paying the bribe and will be sentenced April 22.

As part of the court proceedings, Snyder's defense team filed a motion to acquit immediately after testimony in the 19-day trial ended. U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen has not yet ruled on that motion.

In a 60-page supplemental motion for the acquittal filed Thursday, Snyder's attorneys claim "AUSA Koster committed prosecutorial misconduct and violated Mr. Snyder's due process rights by discontinuing the Buhas' immunity and coercing the Buhas into silence, which excluded testimony and evidence exonerating Mr. Snyder."

According to a sworn statement from the Buhas' attorney, Thomas Mullins, the brothers were given immunity for their testimony in front of the grand jury in January 2016.

Near the beginning of the trial, Koster allegedly told Snyder's attorneys she believed the Buhas had lied, but did not provide evidence of the lies, Mullins said. That "put me and my clients in a bind" and was taken as a threat. Mullins said he then told his clients to invoke the Fifth Amendment. Bob Buha did so when called to the stand by Snyder's team. Steve Buha was not called to testify.

In addition, the supplemental motion claims the tax obstruction case presented by prosecutors "has fatal legal and factual flaws."

In a second filing Thursday, Snyder asked that if Van Bokkelen does not rule in his favor on the acquittal, that an alternative remedy would be a new trial on the two counts for which he was convicted.

Snyder claims grounds for the new trial include the exclusion of the Buhas' testimony on his behalf. It also claims the majority of the evidence in that bribery charge came through testimony from FBI agent Eric Field rather than an eyewitness.

The motion also claims the judge erred in his denial of the defense's request for providing the missing-witness jury instruction to jurors prior to their going into deliberations.

As to the tax obstruction charge, Snyder's attorneys claim evidence presented was insufficient and doesn't support the guilty verdict.