Molester Baruch Lebovits' defense attorney Alan Dershowitz was in court observing the Weberman trial Friday in preparation for his client's case. Meanwhile, three men arrested for taking pictures of Weberman's alleged victim as she testified on the witness stand were arraigned Friday night, and Dershowitz claims it will be very difficult to prove they were attempting to intimidate the alleged victim.
Originally published 12-1-2012 at 9:50 pm
Three of the men were arraigned Friday night. The fourth was released due to lack of eividence. The Daily News reports:
…Lemon Juice, Joseph Fried and Yona Weisman were charged with contempt of court. Juice had legally changed his name from Joel Weingarten, according to his friends, though it was unclear why.
Juice’s lawyer, Leopold Gross, insisted his client was actually a supporter of the teen — though his motivations remained a mystery.
All three were held on $5,000 bond. A friend of theirs, Moses Klein, pledged to bail out the alleged scuzzy shutterbugs.
A fourth man initially thought to have taken pictures was not charged due to lack of evidence.…
The News also reports that Fried has a history of harassing the alleged victim and her now-husband:
…In another bizarre twist, Fried, who runs a news service for the Satmar community, had been secretly recorded arguing with the alleged victim’s now-husband a few months ago.
“Even if it’s true, he shouldn’t go to jail,” Fried is heard saying of Weberman, according to the recording obtained by the Daily News and translated from Yiddish. “A Jew doesn’t belong in jail.”…
This attitude – that Jews should not be imprisoned even for crimes like rape and sexual abuse – is not at all uncommon in haredi communities.
Some hasidim were upset with the time of the arraignments, as DNAInfo reported:
…The men appeared before a judge after sundown on Friday, during a time when Jews are not allowed to work, drive or use an elevator.
That made it more difficult for their families to be there for support, and the men will be unable to get a ride home when they are released.
"It's a huge problem," said Joseph Fried's brother, Yoel Fried. "They are going to have to walk home."
The men belong to the Satmar sect of Hasidic Jews who live in Williamsburg, approximately 2.5 to 3 miles from the court.…
The Brooklyn District Attorney's office would not comment on the arraignment taking place Friday night, but did say they have no control over when it happens.
A friend of the young men said he felt the proceedings were being stalled.
"It's very bad. They're doing it on purpose," the friend said. "The paperwork should be done by now. It's been 24 hours."
DNAInfo also reports that all three attorneys representing these men claim that if any photos were taken by their clients, they were taken in the hall, not in court – even though the photo posted on the Internet and emailed to me during the trial that day is a photo of the alleged victim testifying on the witness stand.
[Hat Tips: Ari Mandel ("community organizer" in the video); Seymour.]