Martorano seemed to be a little reticent in his testimony this morning. His seemed somewhat uncomfortable but as he got to the story of the Wheeler and Callahan murders he seemed to have perked up a bit. He takes a sip of water every once in a while and uses the water carafe to refill his glass. I’m surprised at how steady his hand is in pouring the water and drinking the glass. Nothing seems to bother this guy. Even looking at the autopsy pictures he identifies them as if he was looking at a picture of the swan boats.
The last questions this morning revolved around how he felt after killing his buddy Callahan. He said he felt very bad. He risked his life for him. That was the second time he talked about risking his life for Callahan. What he meant is when he went to kill Wheeler in Oklahoma he felt he was somehow risking his life. I didn’t quite follow that but then again this is a gangster testifying
Also near the end he told of meeting with retired FBI Agent Paul Rico at the Miami Jai Alai with Stevie Flemmi. This is as you might expect a place with a lot of security cameras so it seems an unlikely place for a former FBI agent in charge of security to be meeting with two gangsters, one of whom was a fugitive of justice. But the reason for the meeting will stun you if you have any idea of the background of the case.
Martorano said Joe McDonald who had helped him kill Roger Wheeler in Oklahoma and then John Callahan in Florida wanted to know what was doing with the sale of World Jai Alai. The idea behind the murder of Wheeler was so that Callahan could buy that business from her widow and when he got it he would pay Winter Hill $10,000 a week for protection against the Mafia. All of a sudden World Jai Alai that was paying nothing for protection from the Mafia was going to be threatened by it. That never made sense to me.
But obviously once Martorano and McDonald murdered Callahan there was no one left to buy the business. Why then is Joe McDonald sending Martorano to Rico to ask what is going on? This is absurd and shows the extent of lying these guys are involved in trying to make Rico look like a bad agent. There’s a ton of things relying on everyone believing Rico was bad that goes far beyond this case. If that meeting is the only thing the prosecutors have then you must believe Rico has become the most maligned person in American history. The question is why? What’s really going in in the background to all these stories?
There’s more of his testimony that rings totally untrue but I’m on a short break and want to get this out so I’ll end here.
When I was practicing law, we in the criminal defense bar knew that you were a straight shooter. Your comments give terrific insight to the trial. Give my regards to your son.
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Robert:
Nice to hear from you. Hope you are well. I may have been a straight shooter but did I ever manage to hit anything. Thanks for writing.
Meanwhile ….. As both the Feds and the defense for James Bulger continue to wallow in the muck here in Boston ….. The F.B.I. has begun a new search for the remains of JIMMY HOFFA out in Oakland Township, Michigan. Convenient timing ? Coincidence ? It’s getting more and more difficult not to be cynical about the F.B.I. and it’s actions !
Gus:
Don’t be cynical. I think the FBI is on to something. The two guys who they know who stole the Gardner Museum paintings, the guys they won’t identify, have passed the word back to them that not only is Jimmy Hoffa there but so are the paintings. The problem is the guy said they were in Oakland, Calfornia but since that is so big the FBI decided Oakland, Michigan would be easier to dig in.
Seriously, the FBI has major problems and it is probably too late to do anything about it.
Mr. MATT – Thank you for your response – and the chuckle ! Enjoying your coverage of the trial very much. Keep up the good work !
Gus:
Thanks for tuning in.
Excellent trial coverage; by far the most insightful and nuanced out there! Long time follower here. Just wanted to know if Whitey has still shown no response to Murderman’s testimony? Is he still staring forward into space?
John:
I was in the press overflow room today – it’s actual better to hear the witnesses and see their expressions than in the main courtroom – but early today before the start of the proceedings I watched the people at the counsel table. The three prosecutors were talking or looking around or fixing their papers waiting as you’d expect, so were the two defense lawyers who were writing or filling their water cups. Whitey stood and stared straight ahead as if he were alone in the room – to me it seemed strange he neither looked left or right – up or down – but seemed mesmerized by the wall that would be 20′ in front of him. He did not alter his stance as the jury came in but he moved his head slightly to look at the jurors – his eyes followed one all the way to the person’s seat (we don’t see the jury in the overflow room). I had a good view of Martorano and he never looked at Whitey except for one occassion when he actully pointed down at him as he said “those guys” referring to Whitey and Stevie. Whitey wore a long sleeve black shirt today and under it he had a white turtle neck that stood out about 1/2″ above his shirt. If he were wearing black pants and not jeans, and a black suit jacket and you walked by him walking down the street you’d think he was a member of the clergy. Thanks for following
Matt,
Diid you see the below video of Fox News talking with Howie Carr? He says “Martorano has and shows remorse” on the killings. As he speaks to Fox he seems to be making things up as he goes along.
http://www.myfoxboston.com/video?clipId=8998272&autoStart=true
Question:
I avoid the man – he has no shame