NYC Gun Court Gets Tough on Offencers
New York City's Busy Gun Court Gets Tough on Ordinary Offenders
By TOM HAYS
NEW YORK Jun 5, 2006 (AP)— The court case listed as the People vs. Godfrey Hayle looked like an unremarkable one: Police claimed the 44-year-old suspect tried to ditch a 9 mm handgun last year during a drug bust.
But when Hayle walked into a downtown Brooklyn courtroom last week, state Supreme Court Justice Robert Holdman was unusually attentive and blunt. For starters, he shot down a defense attorney's bid for a plea deal with no jail time.
"That's not going to happen in this case," Holdman said. "The offer from the district attorney's office is one year. I'm comfortable with that."
It was a message that Holdman a 42-year-old former prosecutor with a crewcut sent several times that morning: Don't expect much leniency in one of the nation's busiest gun courts.
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http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2039608