Shapiro Arato Bach Cases to be Reviewed by Supreme Court

On June 30, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States granted petitions for writs of certiorari in two related criminal cases arising from the alleged bribery of Cuomo aide Joseph Percoco and alleged bid-rigging in “Buffalo Billion” upstate revitalization projects.  Shapiro Arato Bach represents Syracuse developers Steven Aiello and Joseph Gerardi in those cases before the Supreme Court.

The petitions challenge novel theories of prosecution under the federal “honest services” and wire fraud statutes.  One case presents the question of whether bribery encompasses payments to a former government official to lobby his former colleagues.  The other case presents the question of whether deception that deprives a person of the “right to control” his or her property can constitute wire fraud in the absence of economic harm.

Alexandra Shapiro, Ted Sampsell-Jones, Daniel O’Neill, and Fabien Thayamballi co-authored the petition for certiorari and reply jointly submitted by Mr. Aiello and Mr. Gerardi, which are available here and here.

An article by New York Times discussing the Supreme Court’s decision and quoting Alexandra Shapiro is available here.