Freeholder Nidia Davila-Colon, whose defense may rest of whether she may have been drugged by her boyfriend, will go on trial on May 27 for allegedly carrying bribes from county contractor Dr. Oscar Sandoval to former County Executive Robert Janiszewski.
In statements made during the pretrial motions, Davila-Colon’s attorney, Peter Willis of Jersey City, claimed Sandoval – who had worked with federal authorities in a sting operation against Janiszewski leading to the county executive’s arrest and conviction – had prescribed drugs to Davila-Colon during a period when Davila-Colon and Sandoval were dating, sources said. At that time, federal officials have charged, Sandoval was passing bribes to Janiszewski with Davila-Colon as the conduit.
Willis was unavailable for comment last week because of intense preparation for the upcoming trial. His statement seems to indicate that he is leaning towards a defense that could implicate Sandoval, who has not been charge with any wrongdoing thusfar.
But Willis’ suggestion that Sandoval may have overprescribed drugs for Davila-Colon may point to the direction his defense will take when the trial begins, and has already created something of a sensation among political observers. Willis claimed at the pre-trial motions on May 16 that Dr. Sandoval prescribed medications and urged Davila-Colon to use alcohol during the period in which bribes were paid to Janiszewski.
In pleading guilty to extortion last year, Janiszewski said that he received $20,000 from Sandoval in four $5,000 payments, two of which Davila-Colon delivered on behalf of Sandoval.
Willis appears to be creating a defense that would hinge on Davila-Colon being confused by the drug and alcohol use.
“I have no idea what [Willis] is basing his information on,” said Clifford Kuhn, Sandoval’s attorney, last week. “He [Willis] is a good a lawyer and I’m sure he’s trying to sew some seeds of doubt in the jurors’ minds.”
According to the five-count indictment issued against Davila-Colon, she resisted being a conduit for the bribes, and according to the U.S. Attorney, she said, “If [Janiszewski] goes down, I go down;” and “My career is on the line and his is too … if we go, we both go down.”
Janiszewski is expected to testify against Davila-Colon, while Sandoval’s status as a witness is unclear. Davila-Colon has consistently maintained that she has done nothing wrong.
Adding to this courtroom drama, Willis noted that Sandoval had been charged by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s office with possession of a loaded firearm.
According to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s office, Sandoval pleaded not guilty at a hearing in Hackensack on May 12 and faces a trial of his own there on June 16.
Several sources said Sandoval had feared for his life because of his cooperation with federal authorities in apprehending Janiszewski.
As many as 47 people might have been tapped
Janiszewski was arrested during the Nov. 2000 League of Municipalities Convention where he was recorded accepting a cash bribe from Sandoval as part of a FBI sting operation. After this, Janiszewski voluntarily wore a listening device for federal authorities until August 2001 when his cover was believed compromised. Janiszewski was apparently taken into protective custody and resigned in early September.
But at the pre-trial motion against Davila-Colon, Willis noted that the FBI had set up numerous recording devices previous to the arrest. Several knowledgeable sources said that up to 47 prominent Hudson County people were bugged during a period starting in 1999 and leading up to Janiszewski’s arrest in 2000.
Willis tried to unveil the names of these public officials and businesspeople but could only disclose Paul Byrne’s name before Judge William Bassler ordered the records sealed. Byrne is a longtime friend of Janiszewski.
Byrne said he talked with Janiszewski as much as 10 times a day during that period, but could not recall anything specific that would aid federal authorities in their investigations.
“If the FBI had my phone tapped, they heard politics and phone sex, and sometimes it might have been hard to tell the difference,” Byrne said, adding that his name should not have been the only name revealed. “If my name came out in that court, then everybody’s name should have been.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Clark, who is prosecuting the case against Davila-Colon, said most of the tapes have nothing to do with her case.