Joseph L. Bruno

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Charge:	Mail Fraud
Sentence:	2 years
Years Imprisoned:
Year Crime:	2005
Year Convicted:	2009
Year Cleared:	2011
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	New York - Federal Case
County or Region of Crime:	Albany
City of Crime:	Albany
Result:	Judicially Exonerated
Summary of Case:	"Joseph L. Bruno was wrongly convicted in December 2009 of two counts of federal honest services mail fraud. Joseph Bruno appealed based of a 2009 US Supreme Court ruling narrowing criminal application of the public officials “honest services” statute. After his conviction by a jury Bruno, the former New York State Senate Majority Leader, was sentenced to two years in prison. Bruno was allowed to remain free on bail pending the outcome of his appeal. While Bruno's appeal was pending, the Supreme Court decided Skilling v. United States, 130 S.Ct. 2896, (2010), which held 18 U.S.C. § 1346 (the honest services statute), only criminalizes fraudulent schemes effectuated through bribes or kickbacks and not mere failures to disclose conflicts of interest. Relying on the Skilling decision, Bruno's conviction was overturned by the U.S. Second Court of Appeals on November 16, 2011 on the basis the government introduce insufficient evidence to prove Bruno committed his charged crimes. The U.S. Attorney's Office announced that it would be moving to dismiss Bruno's indictment. He was then charged him with bribery, and he was acquitted of those charges in May, 2014. Bruno filed a claim with the State for reimbursement of his legal expenses. On December 24, 2014 the New York Attorney General's Office issued a letter to state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli that the state was obligated to reimburse Joseph Bruno for the $2.4 million in legal bills he accrued while defending himself against alleged corruption while in office in two separate trials."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:	"Bruno's conviction was overturned by the U.S. Second Court of Appeals on November 16, 2011, and the U.S. Attorney's Office announced that it would be moving to dismiss Bruno's indictment."
Defendant Aided By:
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:
Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"Bruno conviction to be nixed, By Fredric U. Dicker and Brendan Scott (Post Correspondents), New York Post, November 16, 2010"
Information Location 1:	http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/bruno_conviction_to_be_nixed_yB1etyb1hI2Q7VMIk4N6RM
Information Source 2:	"AG signs off on Bruno legal reimbursement: $2.4 million: Attorney general's office says state must cover ex-senator's $2.4 million legal defense costs, By Rick Karlin (Staff writer), Times Union (Albany, NY), December 24, 2014"
Information Location 2:	http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/AG-signs-off-on-Bruno-legal-reimbursement-2-4-5978359.php
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Joseph L. Bruno

Charge:

Mail Fraud

Sentence:

2 years

Years Imprisoned:

Year Crime:

2005

Year Convicted:

2009

Year Cleared:

2011

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

New York - Federal Case

County or Region of Crime:

Albany

City of Crime:

Albany

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

"Bruno's conviction was overturned by the U.S. Second Court of Appeals on November 16, 2011, and the U.S. Attorney's Office announced that it would be moving to dismiss Bruno's indictment."

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Bruno conviction to be nixed, By Fredric U. Dicker and Brendan Scott (Post Correspondents), New York Post, November 16, 2010"

Information Location 1:

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/bruno_conviction_to_be_nixed_yB1etyb1hI2Q7VMIk4N6RM

Information Source 2:

"AG signs off on Bruno legal reimbursement: $2.4 million: Attorney general's office says state must cover ex-senator's $2.4 million legal defense costs, By Rick Karlin (Staff writer), Times Union (Albany, NY), December 24, 2014"

Information Location 2:

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/AG-signs-off-on-Bruno-legal-reimbursement-2-4-5978359.php

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Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

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