Former Lackawanna County commissioner Robert Cordaro has asked a federal appellate court to grant him re-argument in his appeal of his corruption conviction, arguing the panel of judges who ruled on his case did not provide sufficient detail of their reasoning in denying one of the issues he raised.
The 3rd Circuit Court of appeals on May 31 upheld the June 2011 convictions of Mr. Cordaro and his co-defendant, former commissioner A.J. Munchak, on charges they extorted money from companies that sought contracts with the county.
Mr. Cordaro raised several issues on appeal. His motion for re-argument seeks a new hearing only on his claims relating to the prosecution's questioning of him about the credibility of witnesses who testified against him.
Peter Goldberger, Mr. Cordaro's attorney, claimed Mr. Cordaro should get a new trial because the trial judge wrongly permitted the line of questioning, which generally is not permitted under federal criminal court rules.
In its ruling, a three-member panel of the 3rd Circuit Court acknowledged the line of questioning was improper, but rejected the argument because Mr. Cordaro's trial attorney did not object to the questions at the time. It also found the error was not prejudicial to Mr. Cordaro's defense.
In seeking re-argument, Mr. Goldberger notes the court's opinion does not detail its reasoning in determining the error did not prejudice Mr. Cordaro's defense. Mr. Goldberger contends the court should follow the precedent set by other appellate courts, which have provided a detailed analysis of the legal issues involved in deciding whether an error was harmless.
The appeal seeks a hearing only for Mr. Cordaro. Mr. Munchak's attorney did not join in the motion.
Contact the writer: tbesecker@timesshamrock.com