08/09/10 Byram father appeals conviction; son accepts probation

A Byram man sentenced to five years in jail for restraining three people at gunpoint is appealing his case, citing juror misconduct and flawed rulings by the presiding judge.

Pasquale Ciullo, 51, was sentenced last month after a jury found him guilty on three counts of unlawful restraint surrounding a 2007 property dispute on Byram Shore Road. Prosecutors said Ciullo and his son, Angelo, pointed guns at two day laborers hired by a neighbor to install a fence that intruded on their driveway. Pasquale Ciullo was also charged with chasing his neighbor, Rose Pinchuk, away from the driveway and hitting her with a shovel. He was acquitted of an assault charge.

Ciullo's lawyer, Edward Gavin, submitted several possible avenues for an appeal in recently filed court documents, including alleged juror misconduct.

"The misconduct (included) stereotypical remarks, between and among jurors about the defendants, their ethnicity, and their attorneys," the motion states. "The court's subsequent instruction to the jury to cease such discussions, to not prejudge the case and to decide the case based on the evidence did not cure the harm sustained by defendant."

During Ciullo's trial, a juror was dismissed after she talked to a witness outside the court. The woman later told a judge she intentionally talked to the witness so she would be excused from the case, claiming she was disillusioned by other jurors talking about the case prior to deliberations.

The remaining jurors denied they prejudged the case and a judge warned them to refrain from speaking about the trial or forming preliminary opinions. Pasquale Ciullo's lawyer and his son's lawyer argued for a mistrial at that point, which was denied. Angelo Ciullo was convicted on two counts of unlawful restraint and weapons in a motor vehicle. He was sentenced to five years of probation in July....

Source:

http://www.greenwichtime.com/default/article/Father-appeals-son-accepts-probation-609407.php

08/09/10 Neighborhood group protests cost to use library after hours

Leaders of the Byram Neighborhood Association are taking issue with a custodial fee required of groups looking to use the community room at the recently renovated Byram Shubert Library.

Since the branch library reopened last year, Greenwich Library has required groups that use the space after hours to pay for a staff member to be present and lock up the building.

Michael Bocchino, the group's chairman, said he feels requiring local organizations to pay to use a space built for community meetings is unfair.

While the neighborhood association currently meets for free at St. Paul Lutheran Church on nearby Delavan Avenue, Bocchino said he'd rather use the library because "there are so many members of the neighborhood association whose dollars went for this new community room."

"It's ridiculous for them to charge us money when the community room was built with part of the community's money," Bocchino said.

Carol Mahoney, director of Greenwich Library, said she wasn't aware that anyone had an issue with the fee, a rate of $39.60 per hour, with a three-hour minimum, an average of the library's custodial overtime rates.

Mahoney said the library has a contractual obligation to pay a custodian to be in the building beyond the 48 hours that the facility is open. The new community room, which accommodates 100 people, and is also used for library programming, is connected to the building and doesn't have a separate entrance.

Before the branch's multimillion-dollar renovation, library staff was much more relaxed with community groups, providing them with the key and having them lock up after meetings. But Mahoney said since the library has a responsibility to protect the community's investment, that can no longer be done....

Source:

http://www.greenwichtime.com/default/article/Group-protests-cost-to-use-library-after-hours-609281.php