NYC Molotov cocktail lawyers offered plea deal

It’s been more than six months since we learned the identities of Colinford Mattis and Urooj Rahman, the two New York City attorneys (formerly) who blew up an NYPD cruiser with a Molotov cocktail last summer during a Black Lives Matter riot. They were arrested fairly quickly and their case has been slowly progressing in court. But all of that may come to a halt this month. It’s being reported that the two “young and idealistic lawyers” have been offered a plea deal and their own attorneys may be inclined to take it. The details of the offer haven’t been released yet, but there are understandable suspicions that the liberal federal prosecutors in the Big Apple may be about to turn a blind eye to the serious nature of their offenses and cut them a break based on their ideological positions. (Free Beacon)

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Federal prosecutors have offered a plea deal to two New York City lawyers accused of fire-bombing a police car and distributing Molotov cocktails to rioters during protests that followed the death of George Floyd last summer.

The defendants, Colinford Mattis and Urooj Rahman, were offered plea bargains on Feb. 11, according to a letter prosecutors submitted to a federal trial court on Saturday. Prosecutors and defense lawyers were set to participate in a status hearing on Tuesday morning, which was rescheduled in light of the new developments.

“The parties are engaged in plea negotiations which they believe are likely to result in a disposition of this case without trial,” the letter reads.

The letter was signed by Mark Lesko, the First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. Lesko is a favorite among Democrats and is reportedly on Joe Biden’s shortlist to take over the top spot in the Eastern District.

But what sort of plea deal could be in the offing? Both of these defendants are facing seven felony charges including arson, conspiracy, and illegal use of explosives. There is little to no question of their guilt and they should be easily convicted if the case goes to trial. Rahman was caught on video firebombing the cruiser and Mattis not only had a pile of Molotov cocktails in his vehicle, but multiple witnesses have testified that he was trying to distribute them to the crowd, encouraging them to engage in “more violence and destruction.”

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Rahman gave an interview to a reporter in the hours leading up to the firebombing. In it, she said, “the only way they hear us is through violence.” How much more of a case do you need to make?

If this plea deal results in reduced charges involving misdemeanor, it will be a total miscarriage of justice. These two individuals were officers of the court, and as such they need to be held to a higher standard than any random rioter who was busting up windows. Also, they weren’t just attacking private property or looting businesses. They firebombed a police car, a symbol of law and order.

Any attorney found guilty of a felony in New York State is immediately disbarred permanently. On top of that, the pair are looking at as much as 35 years in prison on the original charges. If they are suddenly let off with a slap on the wrist, then we’ll know that the crimes we’ve seen playing out in cities around the nation are not going to be taken seriously by our government. Crimes committed in the name of “social justice” are apparently not the same as other crimes. Does anyone seriously believe that if someone had thrown a firebomb inside the Capitol Building on January 6th that they would be offered a plea deal?

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