The Department of Justice announced Tuesday that it will not make a fifth attempt to convict John Gotti Jr. of any of a variety of crimes which it has alleged he committed. Gotti Jr. recently survived a fourth trial in which, again, the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict. Read the upcoming (Thursday) New York Times article here.
The allegations against Gotti Jr. have been very serious, and some of the hung juries have tilted sharply in favor of conviction, but failed to reach the required unanimity. Nonetheless, the government's persistence started to make Gotti Jr. a sympathetic figure in at least some eyes. Perhaps it is this perceived shift in public opinion which is prompting the Justice Department to decline to prosecute on "old" crimes.
Naturally, if there are "new" crimes, one may expect Mr. Gotti to quickly receive a so-called "target" letter.
