A New York judge has thrown out all charges, including one of attempted murder, against a Rutland County Sheriff’s Department deputy stemming from a shootout last fall in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Saratoga County Judge James Murphy III issued a blistering 31-page ruling Wednesday, taking aim at prosecutors from the Saratoga County District Attorney’s Office for what he termed “errors” in presenting information to the grand jury in the case against Vito Caselnova.
“The cumulative effect of these errors in this grand jury proceeding rendered it so flawed as to be fundamentally defective and cannot be said to be fair in any sense of the word,” Murphy wrote, agreeing with the request by Caselnova’s attorneys to dismiss the indictment.
Caselnova, of Glen Falls, New York, was placed on unpaid leave from this job as a deputy with the Rutland County Sheriff’s Department following the shootout in November. He has since resigned from the department, according to Rutland County Sheriff David Fox.
The dismissal of the indictment means Caselnova is not currently facing charges, though the judge’s decision allowed for the prosecutors to seek a new indictment by presenting the case to a new grand jury.
Saratoga County District Attorney Karen Heggen, in a statement released after Wednesday’s ruling, indicated her office plans to do just that.
“The Court’s decision raised issues with the way the case was presented — it does not absolve Mr. Caselnova of any wrongdoing,” Heggen said in the statement. “We will take our time to thoroughly review the court’s concerns and will move forward with the case.”
Caselnova, whose attorney has maintained that he acted in self-defense, had faced an eight-count indictment charging him with attempted murder, assault, menacing and reckless endangerment in the shooting that took place Nov. 20.
Prosecutors had alleged that Caselnova shot a Utica, New York, man before pointing a gun at Saratoga Springs police, who shot and wounded him. Police said Caselnova had refused officers’ orders to drop his weapon. Caselnova was transported to a local hospital, where he was reported in fair condition a day after the shooting.
Police had responded to the scene after hearing shots fired in Saratoga’s downtown district. They said they found two groups of people who had been engaged in a bar argument that spilled out onto the street before shots were fired.
Police said officers ordered everyone to drop their weapons. One man, later identified as Caselnova, repeatedly refused to comply before officers opened fire, according to police.
Greg Teresi, Caselnova’s attorney, could not be reached Thursday for comment.
Murphy, in his ruling Wednesday, cited several flaws with the prosecution’s work, including the “mischaracterization” of facts and allowing testimony to the grand jury of inadmissible hearsay and witness speculation with “convoluted instructions” given only days after the testimony.
“In addition to the Court’s findings regarding the defect in instructions,” the judge wrote, “the Court further finds the cumulative impact of the Prosecutor’s improper tactics during the presentation of defendant’s case to the grand jury sufficiently impaired the integrity of the proceedings so as to potentially prejudice the ultimate decision reached by the Grand Jury and warrants dismissal of the indictment.”
Three men from Utica, New York, also charged in the incident, have all entered not guilty pleas to attempted assault, according to The Daily Gazette.
