After Norcross case dismissal, attorneys slam attorney general

After a judge struck down a racketeering indictment of South Jersey powerbroker George Norcross and five other defendants, attorneys and allies of Norcross are demanding the resignation of Attorney General Matt Platkin as they promise to strike back after the prosecution.

Platkin sent shockwaves through the state in June when his office charged Norcross, an influential political leader for more than four decades, in a 13-count racketeering indictment. The indictment accuses the group of extorting a developer to obtain valuable Camden waterfront property at a cheap price while pushing legislation to create extensive tax breaks for the property.

A state judge dismissed the indictment Wednesday morning. The defendants argued the allegations listed in the indictment didn’t constitute a crime—the judge agreed. The judge also ruled the charges were not brought within the applicable statute of limitations.

Michael Critchley, who represents Norcross, accused the attorney general of pushing the “sham” indictment to boost his political profile. Platkin isn’t running for office, but Critchley said the attorney general put his ambition before the law.

“I think it’s time for us to get someone who can serve as an attorney general who is not a politician masquerading as a law enforcement officer,” Critchley said during a press conference Wednesday. “Because when you look at what Mr. Platkin has done during the term as attorney general, all he’s trying to do is try to set the footing for a political career.”

Also charged in the indictment were Norcross’ brother, Philip Norcross, who runs the politically potent Parker McCay law firm; Dana Redd, a former state senator and Camden mayor; and Norcross’ longtime attorney, Bill Tambussi. John O’Donnell, the president of a real estate developer with ties to Norcross, and Sidney Brown, the CEO of NFI, a trucking company, were also indicted.

Critchley said the group’s attorneys are still analyzing the decision and preparing for an appeal, which Platkin has promised to bring. He said they haven’t closed the door on any recourse, including a potential civil suit against the embattled Office of Public Integrity and Accountability for prosecutorial misconduct.

“[Platkin] did a lot of damage to them, professionally, financially, to their family, to the wives, to the children, and there must be redress for that,” Critchley said. “He just cannot walk away from his conduct. And as I said before, one way or another, he will be held accountable.”

Much of the ire was focused on the OPIA, the office under the attorney general that brought the charges. The OPIA has faced allegations of prosecutorial misconduct, and the attorneys said the office needs oversight.

“There has been a lot of drama … around the OPIA,” said attorney Kevin Marino, who represents Philip Norcross. “I don’t think it’s too trite to say we probably could use an OPIA for the OPIA.”

In a statement today, Platkin said he “never promised that these cases would be easy, because too many have come to view corruption as simply the way the powerful do business in New Jersey.”

The defendants’ lawyers said the indictment could not stand under the weight of its own facts. For their motion to dismiss, the attorneys argued that even if every allegation in the indictment was true, the behavior didn’t amount to a crime, an argument the judge agreed with.

“Even if [prosecutors] could prove every single word of the indictment and prove every reasonable, rational inference to be drawn from those words, these things don’t add up to a crime,” Marino said.

Superior Court Judge Peter Warshaw likely wrote his decision with the knowledge Platkin would appeal. The attorneys said they’re not worried.

“He’s going to have to contend with 96 pages of bulletproof findings,” Marino said.

Former U.S. District Court Judge Noel Hillman, Brown’s attorney, praised Warshaw’s ruling.

“This case demonstrates the importance in our democracy of an independent judiciary acting as a check against the excesses of the executive branch. That is not a political statement, it’s a fact,” Hillman said.  “This, when you take the time to read it, is a masterful opinion, comprehensive, analytical, thoughtful in how it assessed each defendant separately and individually, faithful to the law, and intellectually honest.”

Tambussi’s attorney, Lee Vartan, accused the attorney general of “attempting to criminalize the routine practice of law” and noted that Warshaw’s ruling “vindicated our position and our argument in total.”

“This was a vanity prosecution on the part of the attorney general. It had no legal substance, no factual substance, and it is of the same piece of what OPIA 00 the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability — has done time and time again, bring prosecutions that have no merit and, in some cases, worse, hide the ball from the defendants who are charged,” Vartan stated.

Asked about possible civil litigation by Norcross and others, Critchley said, “everything is on the table.”

“There has to be some avenue where people who have been abused, the way the defense in this case have been abused, have an avenue of redress,” Critchley.

And in the long run, they don’t expect future attorneys general to keep pushing the prosecution. Platkin will not return as attorney general unless the next governor reappoints him.

“There will be a new attorney general,” Critchley said. “I think anybody who looks at this investigation with a disinterested, impassioned state of mind will say, I do not want to be holding this leaking bag of you-know-what.”

After the lawyers’ press conference, Platkin issued a statement doubling down on his criticism of Norcross’ defense.

“These baseless threats by defense counsel merit no response. This decision was not simply wrong, but without precedent: no one has identified a single case in which a judge granted a motion to dismiss like this one, without even reviewing the months of evidence on which the grand jury relied,” Platkin said.  “If allowed to stand, this decision would send a message to every resident of our State that there are two systems of criminal justice — one for the absolute most wealthy and well-connected few, and one for everyone else.”