Former Portage mayor's new bribery trial postponed by COVID pandemic
NWI Times
November 20, 2020
HAMMOND — Former Portage Mayor James Snyder's new bribery trial, which was set to begin Dec. 7, has been postponed until sometime after Jan. 29 due to concerns over threats posed by the growing COVID-19 pandemic.
"Based on the current conditions of Lake and Porter County, it is not possible to summon a pool of potential jurors and conduct a jury trial in a manner that does not expose potential jurors, counsel, court staff, and litigants to substantial and unacceptable health risks, specifically, the danger of becoming infected with COVID-19," U.S. District Court Judge Theresa Springmann said in an order issued Monday.
The judge said she will set a new trial at a later date.
"There may be cases where, even in light of the risks associated with conducting a jury trial during the pandemic, the Court would have no choice but to proceed," the order reads. "However, in this case, the Defendant is not in custody and the parties have presented no reason that compels the undersigned to exercise her discretion and continue with the trial as scheduled."
Federal prosecutors are again trying to prove Snyder, a Republican, solicited a bribe from two Portage businessmen.
The government alleges the then-mayor corruptly steered $1.125 million in contracts for the city of Portage to buy garbage trucks from a Portage trucking firm in 2013.
The government alleges Snyder solicited and received a $13,000 bribe from the firm’s former owners a few weeks later.
Snyder has pleaded not guilty.
His law team argues the $13,000 was a legitimate payment for consulting services Snyder provided the trucking dealership to save money on the cost of insurance and information technology.
Snyder was indicated in late 2016 and he was found guilty in early 2019 of bribery and federal tax violations.
The bribery verdict was overturned in late 2019 and Springmann decided last month Snyder must face a new jury on the bribery charge, overruling defense arguments that a second trial was barred by the constitutional protection against double jeopardy.
"Jury trials are the most dangerous court proceeding because they require dozens of individuals to gather in close proximity, in courtrooms with limited ventilation, for an extended period of time," the judge said. "Complex, multi-day trials, like the Defendant’s trial, pose additional risks because they require the gathering of a greater number of people, as the Court must summon more prospective jurors for voir dire and the litigants generally call more witnesses to testify. Additionally, multi-day trials necessarily require the litigants and jurors to return to the courthouse every day, which further increases the risk that someone unknowingly contracts COVID-19 and spreads the virus to the other trial participants."
Springmann cites the high COVID-19 rates in Lake and Porter counties where the federal court draws its jurors.
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