Opinion ID: 203757
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: John's cooperation with city and federal authorities

Text: In 1996, while in custody in New York awaiting trial on a state robbery charge, John contacted New York authorities for the purpose of sharing information about the Poison Clan's criminal activities, including information regarding Chang's murder. John made a statement about Chang's murder that eventually came to the attention of Assistant United States Attorney David Novak, who was building a federal case in Virginia against Beckford and other Poison Clan members. Novak and John's New York attorney arranged to have John transferred to a federal institution in Virginia so that he could be available to give information to Novak about the Poison Clan. They also agreed that Novak would seek to have counsel appointed for John. The first meeting between John and Novak took place in Virginia in April 1996. At that meeting, Novak advised John that he should be represented by counsel and spent half an hour attempting to persuade John to accept representation. John refused representation. Novak also offered John a proffer letter which stated that nothing contained in the oral proffer ... will be used against you.... John declined to sign the proffer letter, telling Novak that he just wanted to tell his story. Novak developed the impression that John wanted to even the score with Beckford, whom John believed was responsible for Henry's murder. John subsequently gave information about criminal activity by Poison Clan members. Following that initial interview, John was debriefed on a number of occasions by Novak and by federal agents. John implicated himself in some of the Poison Clan's criminal activity, admitting at one point that he provided the gun that was used to murder Chang. During those interviews, John was asked at various points whether he had ever killed anyone. He consistently answered that he had not. In May 1996, John testified before a federal grand jury about the Poison Clan's drug operations and about several murders. Prior to this testimony, Novak and John had agreed that, in return for John's cooperation with the federal prosecution, Novak would recommend to the Brooklyn District Attorney (DA) a favorable treatment in his robbery case. The grand jury transcript itself includes John's acknowledgment of the government's agreement to notify the Brooklyn DA of his cooperation, and further shows that John was warned that he could be prosecuted for perjury if he lied. The transcript contains no references to an immunity agreement. After Novak informed the Brooklyn DA of John's cooperation, John's pending plea deal in the Brooklyn robbery case was reduced from five-to-ten years to three-to-five years incarceration. In October 1996, Beckford and others were indicted for multiple homicides, as well as for racketeering, conspiracy, and engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise. At around this time, John, still in prison in Virginia, began acting strangely. He reportedly walked around naked, threw fecal matter about, poured milk on his head, cut himself, banged his head against a wall, and tied a string around his neck in an apparent attempt to commit suicide. We pause here to note that several indicted Poison Clan defendants were incarcerated in the same facility as John. The state trial court that heard John's motion to suppress during the later murder prosecution against him observed that there was evidence that John was malingering in order to avoid testifying against the Beckford defendants. After receiving reports of John's bizarre behavior, Novak visited him in the correctional facility. John told Novak that he would not testify at the Beckford trial. Novak responded that he could compel John to testify by granting him immunity, thus stripping him of his Fifth Amendment privilege not to testify. [2] As part of his trial preparation, Novak filed notices about prospective government witnesses concerning their criminal histories, and any rewards or inducements made in exchange for their testimony. See Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150, 154, 92 S.Ct. 763, 31 L.Ed.2d 104 (1972). The notice filed with respect to John, sent to counsel for the Beckford defendants in May 1997 (the 1997 notice), explained the arrangement with the Brooklyn DA. The notice also stated that John has been informed that he has use immunity for his statements, meaning that anything he says cannot be held against him in any fashion. John, however, did not testify at trial. On June 20, 1997, the week before he was scheduled to testify, John was visited by an FBI agent. The agent noticed that John seemed agitated and asked him whether the defendants knew something about him that the government did not that might come up at trial. At that point, John told the agent that he had killed Buffong in Boston. The agent notified Novak of the confession, and Novak elected not to call John as a witness. The agent also notified the Boston police. [3]