Michael Recio and Marcus Wright, the former police bodyguards for the late Mayor Frank Melton, must pay $10,000 each in restitution for their roles in the 2006 warrantless demolition of a private home on Ridgeway Street, a federal judge ruled yesterday.
Recio and Wright will each pay $2,500 to Evans Welch, the tenant of the duplex at the time, and $7,500 each to Jennifer Sutton, the building's owner. Federal prosecutors reached an agreement with defense attorneys on the restitution amount in a conference immediately before yesterday's hearing.
The restitution ruling marks the end of a long saga for Wright and Recio, who both pleaded guilty to misdemeanors after being indicted in July 2008 on federal civil rights charges. Wright accepted a plea deal in October of that year and testified against Recio and Melton in their federal trial, which ended in a hung jury on February 24, 2009. Melton and Recio were set for a re-trial in May when Melton died after battling heart problems for years. Recio entered a guilty plea soon after Melton's death.
Recio and Wright were with Melton on the night of August 26, 2006, when the mayor ordered the destructionwith sledgehammersof a duplex that Evans Welch was living in. At the state trial for Melton and his two bodyguards, defense attorneys portrayed Welch's home as a "crack house," ultimately winning acquittals for all three. The raid on the Ridgeway duplex netted no drugs, however.
Sutton has filed a civil lawsuit against the city. Her attorney, Warren Martin, said yesterday that no hearing date has been set for the case but that he expects it to proceed forward now.
"Ms. Sutton is obviously excited about the Court's ruling today," Martin said. "We're very pleased with the government's efforts in this case, and we're looking forward to further vindicating her civil rights."
Wright's attorney, John Colette, told reporters that the result of Sutton's lawsuit could factor into a reevaluation of the restitution amount.
"We just came up with a figure that would be reasonable," Colette said. "Of course, if Ms. Sutton receives additional restitution through the city, we'll ask that the restitution order be amended."
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