BUFFALO — A pair of knowledgeable sources, intimately familiar with the criminal justice system say it would be "unusual" if an arson case plea deal unfolded as described by Erie County District Attorney John Flynn.
Flynn, in a Tuesday telephone call to 2 On Your Side, said the probation sentence handed down to 30-year-old Brandon Adler last week originated with Judge James Bargnesi.
The D.A. described the "judge's commitment" to probation as the by-product of a conversation which took place back in March in Bargnesi's chambers.
On the calendar was a pre-trial hearing. Instead, the court appearance turned into a change of plea for Adler to 'guilty'.
A transcript of the March 14 hearing shows Judge Bargnesi saying to Adler, "I have had a discussion with your attorney and the Assistant District Attorney and I have indicated to them that if you were to plead guilty that I would sentence you to five years probation."
The fire, back in July 2017, all but destroyed the five-unit Allentown building. Alder lived in the building and started the blaze by lighting his sofa on fire.
On the day the judge announced the plea deal, none of the victims of the arson fire set by Adler were in court.
“The victim impact statement letters had actually just arrived in mailbox the day he changed to a guilty plea. So, right then this system was failing,” says Barry Rebholz, who lived in the fire-damaged building and lost everything he owned.
Rebholz and other tenants of the building remain angry Adler got no prison time at sentencing.
But our sources say, while it is possible for a judge to craft a plea deal, to do so would be "unusual." This casts some doubt about the D.A.'s version of events on the Adler sentencing.
2 On Your Side has reached out to Judge Bargnesi to hear more about this case, but it appears the judge may not be allowed to speak, even if he wanted to.
The New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics issued what it calls a "primer" on where/when a judge may speak publicly. It reminds judges of the state ban on talking about cases, even in instances where they may want to "counteract public criticism and/or inaccurate statements."