Ronell Wilson, convicted of killing two detectives, is led from the 120th Precinct in St. George on the way to his arraignment in this photo from March 2003.After an appeals court overturned the death penalty for Wilson last year, District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis said in April that he won't allow a penalty-phase retrial until Holder formally requests one.
But three months have lapsed with no response, which prosecutors need to address quickly, the judge said.
"I think the point that there has to be closure for the victims' families is a very important consideration. I think it weighs heavily on everything we do," Garaufis said. "The court has to provide the defendant due process, but Congress has told us there's victims rights and we have to take that into account."
Assistant U.S. District Attorney Jason Jones told him they would get a response from the Department of Justice as soon as they can.
Wilson was sentenced to die by lethal injection for gunning down Detectives James V. Nemorin and Rodney J. Andrews from the back seat of a car in Tompkinsville on March 10, 2003. Despite the overturned death penalty, his murder conviction stood.
In July 2005, then-U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales had signed off on the decision to pursue the death penalty after a special committee reviewed the case.
Subsequently, in August 2006, Gonzales nixed a pretrial plea deal that would have spared Wilson's life and sent him to state prison without the possibility of release, the suspect's lawyers said at a 2009 appellate court proceeding.
Wilson's defense attorneys said they'd ask the Department of Justice to reconsider its decision to ask for the death penalty. Garaufis said they can do that, but should wait on word from Holder first.
Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan had turned the case over to federal prosecutors in November 2004 after New York struck down the state's death penalty.
Garaufis said he wanted a speedy decision before costs start adding up for the defense and the court. He set March 5 for the start of jury selection, provided Holder's decision is in, and the court case could start a month after that.
One of Wilson's attornies David M. Stern had requested a May 2012 jury selection start date.
The prosecution's case could last about three weeks while the defense hasn't said how long it would need."
Several dozen uniformed and plainclothes officers packed the small gallery in the courtroom. Nemorin and Andrews's widows were both present, but it wasn't evident if any of Wilson's family members were represented.
A bespectacled Wilson was wearing tan prison scrubs.
He said nothing during the 25-minute proceeding.
"I certainly am impressed with the judge's concern for the families of the detectives," said Michael Palladino, president of the Detectives Endowment Association."Anything less than the penalty of death would be short of justice."
Garaufis set a status conference for Sept. 14.
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