Tell the truth.
That’s the only legal advice the city’s top lawyer, Michael Cardozo, needed to give firefighters and officials being questioned by Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau about last month’s deadly fire at the former Deutsche Bank building.
The New York Times reported over the weekend that Cardozo and his staff tried to summon firefighters in for “briefings” before the witnesses spoke to prosecutors. This week, the city hired a high-priced criminal defense attorney to monitor the flow of information to Morgenthau.
The right to an attorney is a bedrock principle of our legal system, but that does not mean government should pay to defend any crimes that might have been committed on the public’s dime.
Let’s be clear. There is overwhelming evidence of government neglect at Deutsche, but it may turn out that none of it amounts to crimes.
The contractors, Bovis Lend Lease and John Galt Corp., also may not be guilty of criminal wrongdoing. That’s what Morgenthau’s investigation will determine.
Cardozo, the Corporation Counsel, and his boss, Mayor Mike Bloomberg, should want to know if any crimes were committed by city employees.
This is not some two-bit D.A. who files phony rape charges to win an election. And this isn’t a politically-motivated fishing expedition either. Morgenthau has more than three decades of prosecutorial experience. He and his team of prosecutors are among the most-respected in the country.
If criminal trials are warranted, it could lead to answers to some of the questions that otherwise will not be answered with credibility. For one, why was the demolition allowed to continue despite numerous fire safety violations and several instances of falling debris? Why was John Galt hired? Why did government monitors allow smoking in a building with combustible materials? Did anyone order the fire department not to inspect the building? Why was the standpipe water supply system rendered useless?
We called for an independent investigation into the fire a few weeks ago because the state and city agencies conducting inquiries are the same ones who were responsible for the project originally.
Although there has been real progress coming up with a safer plan, there continues to be reason to be distrustful. Less than a week after the deaths and new assurances of future safety, a massive forklift fell off the building, seriously injuring two firefighters. Avi Schick, chairperson of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., the building’s owner, scolded an Environmental Protection Agency official for disclosing E.P.A. concerns to the public. We hear that officials continue to berate Community Board 1, after the board passes tough resolutions on Deutsche.
If C.B. 1 warnings had been heeded, Robert Beddia and Joseph Graffagnino could be alive today. Activists, local politicians, and we also issued warnings before the fire. The fact that officials in charge are still worrying about whether a community board resolution embarrasses them, shows that Robert Morgenthau’s independent investigation is needed and must not be hindered.
