NEW YORK LAWYER LIED TO JUDGE ABOUT MOTHER DYING

It’s an old trick, but it almost worked. A Brooklyn lawyer who was unprepared to go to trial convinced a federal judge that he needed more time – because his mother had died. But lawyer John Nonnenmacher’s mother was very much alive. Nonnenmacher had sent his co-counsel, Jason Leventhal, to court on March 21 just an hour before opening statements to tell Brooklyn federal Judge Allyne Ross the sad news. Ross believed it, granting a one-week delay in the ­police brutality case. But Levanthal was actually suspicious of the excuse, and hired a private investigator, who learned three days later that Nonnenmacher’s mother – although recovering from a fall – was still alive. The judge was livid – especially since Nonnenmacher had claimed in February that he couldn’t meet another deadline because his uncle had died. It’s unclear whether that, too, was a lie. Judge Ross has vowed to deal with the lyin’ lawyer.
* Better call Saul.
* Lawyers lie all the time, but you have to do it a whole lot better than this.
* His co-counsel exposed him? Wow, these sharks even turn on each other.
* It could have been worse. He could have killed his mother to help his story.
* It sounds like Klinger trying to get out of the army on M*A*S*H: “Mother dying and older sister pregnant. Older sister dying and mother pregnant. Younger sister pregnant and older sister dying. Half of the family dying, other half pregnant.”
* Okay, this was messed up but have you been watching the O.J. mini-series? Now that was a messed-up trial.
* The star witness for the prosecution – Mark Fuhrman – made extremely derogatory remarks on tape about Judge Ito’s wife. So lying to the judge? That’s nothing.
* Now Nonnenmacher’s mother is dying from embarrassment.
* He still doesn’t get it. He just told the judge he wasn’t ready because the dog ate his legal brief.