Turncoat Gambino underboss Sammy the Bull hires new lawyer and seeks early prison release
Infamous mafia rat Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano — who got a free pass on 19 murders for ratting out John Gotti — is looking for one more get-out-of jail free card.
Gravano, 70, is in the home stretch of serving his 20-year term for running an Ecstasy ring in Arizona and has hired a new lawyer to represent him in the drug case, according to papers filed in Brooklyn Federal Court.
Gravano’s daughter has blabbed on the “Mob Wives” reality show that her father is eligible for a reduced sentence under an amendment to federal sentencing guidelines approved last year by the U.S. Sentencing Commission, sources said.
The lawyer, Thomas Farinella, is expected to apply for a break on Gravano’s sentence to Federal Judge Allyne Ross, who threw the book at the ex-Gambino underboss in 2002, sources said.
“I cannot confirm or deny the reason why I have been retained by Mr. Gravano,” Farinella told the Daily News.
Gravano is eligible to be released from prison a year from now with credit for good behavior, according to court records.
If the judge approves the reduction, he could be entitled to at least 40 months lopped off his sentence, which would send him walking out the door, two legal sources said.
Gravano (L) is sworn in at a hearing in April 1993. He got a free pass on 19 murders for snitching on John Gotti (R).
“He may have a problem with his history of violence,” said a lawyer who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he is not involved in Gravano’s case.
The Sentencing Commission’s revision of guidelines for drug offenses is designed to rectify overly harsh penalties and reduce the populations in federal prisons.
A judge has the discretion to approve or disapprove the application after reviewing papers from the convicted felon and the recommendation of prosecutors.
The judge also evaluates the felon’s disciplinary record behind bars and whether he will pose a danger upon return to the community.
When Gravano was sentenced, the judge made it clear she was disgusted by his return to crime after he was given the deal of the century.
“He demonstrated complete absence of rehabilitation, and he also showed an utter lack of remorse for his prior crimes,” Ross said.
In arguably the most controversial sentence in the history of U.S. organized crime, Gravano received a measly five years in prison in 1994 from Federal Judge Leo Glasser in return for his “invaluable” assistance as a cooperating witness in seven trials including the racketeering case that put Gotti away for life.
Farinella also represents Karen Gravano in a $40 million lawsuit suit against the makers of the video game Grand Theft Auto V, claiming a fictional character called “Antonia Bottino” is a rip-off of the mob princess.
The character also has a mob father, Gambetti family underboss Sammy "Sonny" Bottino, who also happens to be a snitch.
“For a guy to cooperate against John Gotti and then commit crimes after he got the deal of the century, I don’t think anyone should be surprised if he tries for an early release,” said lawyer Jeffrey Lichtman, who represented mob scion John A. "Junior" Gotti.
“He sounds desperate and he’s got nothing to lose,” Lichtman said.
“He already made a fool out of the people, the judge and prosecutors, that believed he had turned his life around.”
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/exclusive-mob-rat-sammy-bull-eyes-early-prison-release-article-1.2247307
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