The court will decide whether the Brooklyn District Attorney must release records in the case of the accused haredi child rapist Avrohom Mondrowitz, records that a victims' lawyer believes will show political favoritism for haredim by Hynes.
The New York Law Journal reported this week that attorney Michael Lesher's case against Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes will be heard by the Court of Appeals. Lesher is due to brief the court on June 28. Oral arguments are due in the Fall.
The case in question is that of notorious alleged child rapist Rabbi Avrohom Mondrowitz, who fled to Israel to escape indictment in 1986.
Lesher told The Jewish Week today that Hynes has "steadfastly refused to disclose any documents since I made my request in the fall of 2007.”
Hynes spokesman Jerry Schmetter told the New York Law Journal Israel’s High Court ruled that the charges Mondrowitz faced were not extraditable offenses.
However, I do not believe that to be wholly correct. Last year, Israel's High Courtruled the charges against Mondrowitz were too old for Mondrowitz to get a fair trial on them in the US. It also noted that the main charges – sodomy of male minors – was not in Israel' penal code at the time the crimes were committed, although it was added later. Based on both reasons, Israel's High Court refused to order Mondrowitz's extradition.
Hopefully, we will soon see if the long delay in asking for Mondrowitz's extradition was unavoidable, or if what many activists have long believed is really true: that Charles Hynes buckled to the demands of haredi rabbis, and allowed Mondrowitz to walk free in Israel.
If the latter turns out to be true, I hope the US Attorney will pursue indictments against Hynes and against those haredi rabbis.