GERALD J. DICHIARA

Gerald J. Di Chiara is a practicing attorney with a concentration in Criminal Law and Litigation. He practices both in the N.Y. Federal and State Courts and has been admitted pro hac vice in many cases in other State and Federal jurisdictions. He has obtained very favorable results for his clients by attacking weaknesses in the prosecution's case through creative and innovative strategies and techniques.

In one well publicized murder case his client was wrongly depicted as a "racist" by the prosecution, Mr. Di Chiara introduced character evidence from three witnesses of color dispelling this prejudicial tactic; in another media driven "murder case" his client was wrongly characterized as a "gay predator" a tactic that was debunked by a computer investigation wherein witnesses were discovered who courageously came forward and testified favorably for the client. Finally, before the Supreme Court ruled barring the use of jury challenges based upon racial lines, "Batson," Mr. Di Chiara was successful in challenging this prosecution tactic in the NY 2d Dept., People v. Reginald Thompson.

Cases of note, where he served as counsel, include: The original "Pizza Connection Case", the "Bensonhurst Case", the "Colombo Crime Family War", "Symbol Technology" and the "Bloomberg-Turner" construction kick-back scandal.

Sample cases & clients:

He represented Paolo Gucci for a number of years, one case being a civil RICO action in the Northern District of Ohio where at trial a Rule 50 dismissal of all claims against Gucci was granted.

He successfully represented 21 Broker-Dealers in a breach of contract action tried before FINRA.

He negotiated a non-jail misdemeanor disposition for his client in the "Bloomberg-Turner" investigation and prosecution.

He represented 2 Officers of the International Longshoreman's Union in a civil RICO case brought by the Government in the SDNY. At settlement neither officer lost his position or suffered any economic penalties.

He served as lead counsel in the Securities and White Collar Fraud prosecution, representing Island Mortgage Network, App.Online and its principals.

He obtained a dismissal of all charges against an officer of the company charged in the "Symbol Technology" prosecution, Eastern District of New York.

He successfully handled a Grand Jury Investigation which resulted in no charges being brought against his client, a noted art dealer, who was suspected of knowingly selling stolen art from a renowned American Artist.

He has represented doctors to runners charged in "no-fault" and "medicare fraud" prosecutions.

He successfully represented a client responsible for public relations and the promoting of securities' sales, (internet "pump & dump" scheme) at a Securities Fraud Prosecution in Chicago, Illinois. On the eve of trial, negotiated a non-jail disposition.

He represented a then sitting legislator in a public corruption inquiry, wherein no charges were brought after the investigation.

Real Estate Developer/ Lawyer NOT GUILTY - In a Public Corruption Case a jury acquitted his client, an attorney, of all charges, including mail, wire fraud and money laundering, in the Federal Court, Eastern District of New York.

His practice has led him to represent defendants, throughout the nation: Las Vegas, Nevada (manufacturing fraudulent credit cards); Tampa, Florida (multi-million dollar money laundering charges); Mississippi (international kidnapping charges); Newark and Trenton, New Jersey; Baltimore, Maryland; Scranton and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C. (Colombian Cartel and other major, multi-kilo, drug conspiracy charges).

Of Constitutional note, Mr. Di Chiara successfully challenged the prosecution's use of race-based peremptory challenges in the case of People v. Reginald Thompson, making law in New York State years before the Supreme Court, in Batson v. Kentucky, declared such practice unconstitutional.

He represented the defendant in the high profile, media intensive hate crime murder trial, People v. Fortunato, (Kings County), wherein the defendant presented evidence of his own sexual proclivity to refute the allegations. Fortunato was acquitted of 14 of 16 counts including the most serious charges, felony murder, assault and robbery.

In a Second Circuit Appeal he secured a reversal based upon Prosecutorial Misconduct, "U.S. v. Charles Urrego," (uncovering that false evidence had been presented at trial).

Mr. Di Chiara's clientele included some celeberities, such as, Paolo Gucci and Bob Guccione but he has successfully represented bankers, attorneys, doctors, union officials, rap artists, business leaders and the average "Joe" who was in need of legal help.

He is an active member of the Columbian Lawyers, and was a past president of the organization. He was active in the Brooklyn Bar Association, serving ten terms as Chairman of the Federal Courts Committee. He has lectured at CLEs and was a guest speaker in the BBA Speakers Program. Other Bar Associations where he is active: The Federal Bar Council, Bay Ridge Lawyers, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the NYS Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He is "AV" rated by Martindale-Hubble, their highest rating for ethical and professional standards and named as a "Super-Lawyer."