Two months after throwing out defense attorney Arienne Irving’s felony convictions for her alleged role in a plot to intimidate witnesses on behalf of a South American drug kingpin, Eastern District of New York Judge John Gleeson has issued a memorandum explaining his decision.
The judge found that although the evidence may have suggested that Irving was “present at various times while … criminal conduct was under way,” no rational juror could have concluded that the government proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Irving “had the knowledge and intent necessary to establish her participation” in the scheme between her boss, Robert Simels, and his client, Shaheed Khan, to tamper with witnesses.
