"Bridgegate" Defendants Ask Judge to Dismiss Charges Against Them

The Washington Bridge case defendants Bridget Anne Kelly and Bill Baroni asked a federal judge to throw out the cases against them. The lawyers of the former chief of staff of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former executive director of the Port Authority respectively, filed the court papers on Monday arguing that impeding traffic flow does not violate civil rights. They also claim that their clients' defenses are unfairly hampered by the inadequate evidence they share.

Kelly's attorney, Michael Critchley, said in the brief that the laws cited by U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman to level charges against the defendants who are both former allies of Gov. Christie, are normally used in theft and bribery cases. He said that there has never been a civil rights prosecution of a person who has caused traffic says Yahoo News.

The filings are the latest development in the legal war that stemmed from the September 1013 lane restrictions from Fort Lee, N.J. to the bridge that caused massive traffic jams. The traffic gridlock around the bridge, which is one of the busiest in the country, lasted for hours on four consecutive days reports NY Times. Baroni and Kelly were indicted on May 1 for conspiring to the plan that was meant to punish the Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich, who is a Democrat, for not endorsing Republican Gov. Christie's re-election bid.

ABC News reports that ex-Port Authority executive David Wildstein has already made a guilty plea in his role in the scheme and is set to testify against Kelly and Baroni. His infamous communications with Kelly, which many consider as the smoking gun in the case, where she supposedly told him that it was "time to cause traffic problems" are called irrelevant in the brief because it was Wildstein who had the power and authority to adjust traffic lanes and not Kelly.

Meanwhile, Michael Baldassare, attorney for Baroni, said attention should be given for the government's alleged failure to provide reasonable evidence to mount an aggressive defense for his client. He alleged that the government lawyers essentially manipulated the U.S. Attorney's Office into not providing adequate evidence to the defense while exonerating Gov. Christie of his responsibility for what is now widely known as Bridgegate.

Baldassare also argued that the government used Baroni's testimony in a state assembly committee investigation to build the case against him which a state law prohibits. Both Baldassare and Critchley asked U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton to throw out the case. The government has until February 24 to respond to their motions.

Tags

'Bridgegate' Scandal, George Washington Bridge scandal, George Washington Bridge Traffic Jam, George Washington Bridge lane closures, gov chris christie, bridget kelly, bill baroni

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