By Patricia Hurtado, New York Newsday
A federal judge has determined that an officer convicted of lying about which cop escorted an injured Abner Louima to a holding cell concluded the officer had no immunity agreement with prosecutors and was rightly indicted by them.
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals had directed U.S. District Court Judge Reena Raggi in Brooklyn to review the conviction of Francisco Rosario, who claimed on appeal that prosecutors had promised him immunity if he would eventually tell the truth.
Raggi had to determine if prosecutors indicted Rosario “simply because the defendant (was) supplying information that the government does not want to hear.”
Rosario was convicted in 2000 of lying to federal agents and prosecutors in September, 1997, in the investigation of the Aug. 9, 1997 sexual assault of Louima at a Brooklyn station house.
Rosario, who was sentenced to 3 years probation, appealed his conviction. He argued that prosecutors later offered him an immunity agreement, which cleared him of any wrongdoing.
Raggi noted Rosario falsely denied being in the room when a bleeding Louima was placed in a cell in the room after being sodomized by Officer Justin Volpe. Five witnesses testified that Rosario was 4 feet from Louima’s cell.
Rosario later changed his story of which officer had custody of Louima, and he gave a description that matched another officer, Thomas Bruder.
Raggi found Rosario was “generally not a credible witness” and said his explanations were “frequently incoherent and implausible.”
Raggi returned the case to the appeals court, which will determine whether Rosario’s conviction should be upheld.