|
Tuesday, March 26, 2019
YANKEES OPENING DAY and NEXT DAY PARADE
The 161st Street Business Improvement District is preparing for the return of the Yankees and the start of the 2019 baseball season. The streets are being swept and sports bars like Stan’s, Billy’s, the Dugout and Yankee Tavern are filled with Opening Day memorabilia. And, the parade route is being cleared.
More than 1,000 students are getting ready to march down the Concourse, the day after the Opener, from 10 AM - 12 Noon, Friday March 29, to showcase their teams, their talents and their support for the Bronx Bombers. The parade features Congressmen Serrano and Espaillat, Grandmaster Caz and Mellie Mel as Grand Marshals. It will march down the Concourse from 165th Street to Lou Gehrig Plaza and turn west towards Yankee Stadium. The Bronx Museum of the Arts, The Bronx Children’s Museum, the Marching Cobras and the Patriot Band and the DSNY bagpipe unit will be featured in the parade.
The students at PS 294, for example, are busy learning the words to “Take Me Out to the Ballgame,” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” Other students at the Andrew Freedman Head Start are painting signs and a banner. All Hallows’ baseball teams are adjusting their uniforms to look spiffy for the parade.
The BID has added a CC mural, touched up the Mantle, Paige and Clemente murals. The BID has also created an Instagram account that features a different Yankee legend every day through the parade on Friday. And, a murals map of the entire district including Joe Di Maggio, Derek Jeter and Mariano will be available electronically and in print by mid-April.
House Committee Chairs Demand DOJ Release Full Mueller Report & Underlying Evidence to Congress
Six House Chairs: “We look forward to receiving the report in full no later than April 2, and to begin receiving the underlying evidence and documents that same day.”
The chairs of six committees in the U.S. House of Representatives wrote to U.S. Attorney General William Barr to demand that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report be made available to Congress together with the underlying evidence. The letter was signed by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, Committee on Oversight and Reform Chairman Elijah E. Cummings, Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Adam B. Schiff, Committee on Financial Services Chairwoman Maxine Waters, Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Richard E. Neal and Committee on Foreign Affairs Chairman Eliot L. Engel.
In their letter, the Members wrote, “Your four-page summary of the Special Counsel’s review is not sufficient for Congress, as a coequal branch of government, to perform [its] critical work. The release of the full report and the underlying evidence and documents is urgently needed by our committees to perform their duties under the Constitution. Those duties include evaluating the underlying facts and determining whether legislative or other reforms are required—both to ensure that the Justice Department is able to carry out investigations without interference or obstruction by the President and to protect our future elections from foreign interference…We look forward to receiving the report in full no later than April 2, and to begin receiving the underlying evidence and documents that same day.”
On March 14, 2019, the House unanimously passed H. Con. Res. 24, a resolution expressing the sense of the Congress, that when completed, Special Counsel Mueller’s report should be made available to the public and to Congress.
On February 22, 2019, the Members wrote to Attorney General William Barr to inform him of their expectation that he will make Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report public “without delay and to the maximum extent permitted by law.”
The governing Special Counsel regulations were designed to ensure “congressional and public confidence in the integrity of the process.” Special Counsel Mueller was appointed by the Justice Department “in order for the American people to have full confidence in the outcome” of the investigation.
Full text of today’s letter is below.
March 25, 2019
The Honorable William P. Barr
Attorney General
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20530
Dear Attorney General Barr:
Your March 24 letter concerning Special Counsel Mueller’s report leaves open many questions concerning the conduct of the President and his closest advisors, as well as that of the Russian government during the 2016 presidential election. Accordingly, we formally request that you release the Special Counsel’s full report to Congress no later than Tuesday, April 2. We also ask that you begin transmitting the underlying evidence and materials to the relevant committees at that time.
As you know, on March 14, the full House of Representatives approved H. Con. Res. 24, calling for the release of the Special Counsel’s report by a vote of 420-0.[1] Each of our committees is currently engaged in oversight activities that go directly to the President’s conduct, his attempts to interfere with federal and congressional investigations, his relationships and communications with the Russian government and other foreign powers, and/or other alleged instances of misconduct.
Your four-page summary of the Special Counsel’s review is not sufficient for Congress, as a coequal branch of government, to perform this critical work. The release of the full report and the underlying evidence and documents is urgently needed by our committees to perform their duties under the Constitution. Those duties include evaluating the underlying facts and determining whether legislative or other reforms are required—both to ensure that the Justice Department is able to carry out investigations without interference or obstruction by the President and to protect our future elections from foreign interference.
First, Congress must be permitted to make an independent assessment of the evidence regarding obstruction of justice. The determinations you have reached regarding obstruction and the manner in which you chose to characterize the Special Counsel’s investigation only raise further questions, particularly in light of the Special Counsel’s decision to refrain from making “a traditional prosecutorial judgment.”[2] We also cannot evaluate your determination that “the report identifies no actions” that meet the elements of obstruction in the absence of the report, evidence and other materials.[3]
Second, we have no reason to question that Special Counsel Mueller made a well-considered prosecutorial judgment in two specific and narrow areas—whether the Trump campaign conspired to join Russia’s election-related online disinformation and hacking and dissemination efforts. But it is vital for national security purposes that Congress be able to evaluate the full body of facts and evidence collected and evaluated by the Special Counsel, including all information gathered of a counterintelligence nature.
The provision of the report—in complete and unredacted form—and the underlying evidence and materials would be fully consistent with the Justice Department’s practice and precedent with Congress, which the Department reinforced in recent years. With respect to the Hillary Clinton email investigation, the Department and the FBI released more than 880,000 pages of documents, publicly identified career officials involved in the case, and produced volumes of internal deliberative materials, including sensitive investigatory and classified materials.[4] In response to congressional requests and subpoenas regarding allegations of bias in the Russia investigation, the Department produced to congressional committees thousands of pages of highly sensitive law enforcement and classified investigatory and deliberative records related to that investigation—which remained open and ongoing at the time. Moreover, the Department produced to congressional committees in full, and then took the unprecedented step of releasing to the public in redacted form, multiple documents related to the surveillance of a United States person under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.[5]
We look forward to receiving the report in full no later than April 2, and to begin receiving the underlying evidence and documents that same day.[6] To the extent that you believe applicable law limits your ability to comply, we urge you to begin the process of consultation with us immediately in order to establish shared parameters for resolving those issues without delay.
Sincerely,
______________________________
Jerrold Nadler
House Committee on the Judiciary
______________________________
Adam Schiff
Chairman
House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
______________________________
Richard E. Neal
Chairman
House Committee on Ways and Means
______________________________
Elijah E. Cummings
Chairman
House Committee on Oversight and Reform
______________________________
Maxine Waters
Chairwoman
House Committee on Financial Services
______________________________
Eliot L. Engel
Chairman
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
Bronx Metro-North Station Area Study - Public Open House: Morris Park and Parkchester
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Monday, March 25, 2019
U.S. Attorney Announces The Arrest Of Michael Avenatti For Engaging In A Scheme To Extort A Public Company
Avenatti Is Alleged To Have Used Threats of Economic and Reputational Harm To Demand More Than $20 Million In Payments
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the arrest today of MICHAEL AVENATTI on federal extortion and interstate threat charges. As alleged, AVENATTI, an attorney, attempted to extract more than $20 million in payments from a publicly traded company by threatening to use his ability to garner publicity to inflict substantial financial and reputational harm on the company if his demands were not met. AVENATTI was simultaneously arrested on separate charges brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. AVENATTI will be presented today in Manhattan federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Katharine H. Parker.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “As alleged, Avenatti used illegal and extortionate threats for the purpose of obtaining millions of dollars in payments from a public company. Calling this anticipated payout a retainer or a settlement doesn’t change what it was – a shakedown. When lawyers use their law licenses as weapons, as a guise to extort payments for themselves, they are no longer acting as attorneys. They are acting as criminals, and they will held responsible for their conduct.”
FBI Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said: “As alleged, Michael Avenatti approached Nike last week with a list of financial demands in exchange for covering up allegations of misconduct on behalf of the company. The lofty price tag included a $1.5 million payoff for Avenatti’s client and upwards of tens of millions of dollars for the legal services of his firm – services Nike never requested. This is nothing more than a straightforward case of extortion. In the event anyone needs to be reminded, this type of behavior is illegal and it will not be tolerated – especially when committed by a lawyer who is supposed to use his license to practice law, not to willfully violate it.”
According to the allegations in the Complaint unsealed today[1]:
Background to the Extortion Scheme
In a scheme that unfolded in less than a week, AVENATTI and a co-conspirator not named as a defendant in the Complaint (“CC-1”) used threats of economic and reputational harm to extort NIKE, Inc. (“Nike”), a multinational corporation engaged in, among other things, the marketing and sale of athletic apparel, footwear, and equipment. Specifically, AVENATTI threatened to hold a press conference on the eve of Nike’s quarterly earnings call and the start of the annual National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) men’s basketball tournament at which he would announce allegations of misconduct by employees of Nike. AVENATTI stated that he would refrain from holding the press conference and harming Nike only if Nike made a payment of $1.5 million to a client of AVENATTI’s in possession of information damaging to Nike (“Client-1), and further agreed to “retain” AVENATTI and CC-1 to conduct an “internal investigation” – an investigation that Nike did not request – for which AVENATTI and CC-1 demanded to be paid, at a minimum, between $15 and $25 million. Alternatively, and in lieu of such a retainer agreement, AVENATTI and CC-1 demanded a total payment of $22.5 million from Nike to resolve any claims Client-1 might have and additionally to buy AVENATTI’s silence.
The March 19 Meeting With Avenatti
As alleged, AVENATTI first met with representatives of Nike last Tuesday, March 19, 2019, in New York, New York. At that meeting, AVENATTI claimed to represent a coach of an amateur youth travel basketball team sponsored by Nike, i.e., Client-1. AVENATTI claimed the team coached by Client-1 had recently lost its sponsorship with Nike, one worth approximately $72,000 a year, and that his client had information that Nike employees had been engaged in illicit payments to the families of high school student athletes. AVENATTI further stated that he planned to hold a press conference the next day announcing allegations of misconduct at Nike, and made clear that he had approached Nike now because he knew that the annual NCAA tournament – an event of significance to Nike and its brand – was about to begin, and further because he was aware that Nike’s quarterly earnings call was scheduled for March 21, 2019, thus maximizing the potential financial and reputational damage his press conference could cause to Nike.
AVENATTI further stated that he would refrain from holding that press conference and damaging Nike if Nike agreed to two demands: (1) Nike must pay $1.5 million to Client-1 as a settlement for any claims Client-1 might have regarding Nike’s decision not to renew its contract with the team coached by Client-1; and (2) Nike must hire AVENATTI and CC-1 to conduct an internal investigation of Nike, with a provision that if Nike hired another firm to conduct such an internal investigation, Nike would still be required to pay AVENATTI and CC-1 at least twice the fees of any other firm hired. AVENATTI made clear that Nike would have to agree to accept those demands on a very short time frame. Nike immediately contacted the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, which launched an investigation in conjunction with the FBI.
The March 20 Call With Avenatti
In a follow-up call on March 20, 2019, recorded by law enforcement, AVENATTI reiterated both his threat, stating, in substance and in part, that unless Nike immediately agreed to his financial demands, he would hold his press conference and, as AVENATTI threatened: “I’ll go and I’ll go take ten billion dollars off your client’s market cap. But I’m not f***ing around.” During the same call, AVENATTI made clear that his demands included not simply that he and CC-1 be paid for an “internal investigation,” but that he be paid more than $9 million. As AVENATTI stated during the call: “I’m not f***ing around with this, and I’m not continuing to play games. . . . You guys know enough now to know you’ve got a serious problem. And it’s worth more in exposure to me to just blow the lid on this thing. A few million dollars doesn’t move the needle for me. I’m just being really frank with you. So if that’s what, if that’s what’s being contemplated, then let’s just say it was good to meet you, and we’re done. And I’ll proceed with my press conference tomorrow. . . . I’m not f***ing around with this thing anymore. So if you guys think that you know, we’re gonna negotiate a million five, and you’re gonna hire us to do an internal investigation, but it’s gonna be capped at 3 or 5 or 7 million dollars, like let’s just be done.”
The March 21 Meeting With Avenatti
On March 21, 2019, at the direction of law enforcement, representatives of Nike met again with AVENATTI and CC-1. During the meeting, AVENATTI reiterated his demand for a $1.5 million payment for his client and, with respect to his demand to be retained for an internal investigation, AVENATTI stated, in substance and in part, that he and CC-1 would require a $12 million retainer to be paid immediately and to be “deemed earned when paid,” with a minimum guarantee of $15 million in billings and a maximum fee of $25 million, “unless the scope changes.” When informed by an outside attorney for Nike (“Attorney-1”) that Attorney-1 has never received a $12 million retainer from Nike and never done an investigation for Nike “that breaks $10 million,” AVENATTI responded, in substance and in part, by asking whether Attorney-1 has ever “held the balls of the client in your hand where you could take five to six billion dollars market cap off of them?”
When Attorney-1 asked, in substance and in part, whether Nike could resolve the demands just by paying Client-1, rather than retaining AVENATTI and CC-1, AVENATTI and CC-1 conferred privately. AVENATTI then stated: “If [Nike] wants to have one confidential settlement and we’re done, they can buy that for twenty-two and half million dollars and we’re done. . . . Full confidentiality, we ride off into the sunset. . . .” AVENATTI then laid out again his threat of harm to Nike, adding that “as soon as this becomes public, I am going to receive calls from all over the country from parents and coaches and friends and all kinds of people – this is always what happens – and they are all going to say I’ve got an email or a text message or – now, 90% of that is going to be bullshit because it’s always bullshit 90% of the time, always, whether it’s R. Kelly or Trump, the list goes on and on – but 10% of it is actually going to be true, and then what’s going to happen is that this is going to snowball . . . and every time we got more information, that’s going to be the Washington Post, the New York Times, ESPN, a press conference, and the company will die – not die, but they are going to incur cut after cut after cut after cut, and that’s what’s going to happen as soon as this thing becomes public.”
Shortly after the March 21, 2019, meeting ended, and consistent with the threats AVENATTI communicated, AVENATTI posted a message to Twitter writing, in reference to an article about a prior prosecution involving employees of a rival company: “Something tells me that we have not reached the end of this scandal. It is likely far far broader than imagined…”
AVENATTI, 48, of Los Angeles, California, is charged with one count of conspiracy to transmit interstate communications with intent to extort, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, one count of conspiracy to commit extortion, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, one count of transmission of interstate communications with intent to extort, which carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison, and one count of extortion, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Berman praised the work of the FBI and the Special Agents of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and noted that the investigation is ongoing.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth below constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Police-involved Shooting in the 111 Precinct, Queens
March 24, 2019
Remarks as Prepared for Chief of Patrol Rodney Harrison
Good evening I'm Rodney Harrison, Chief of Patrol. I'm here with Assistant Chief Martin Morales, Commanding Officer, Queens North and Deputy Chief Edward Lott, Commanding Officer of Queens North Detectives.
This incident is in its preliminary stage and is subject to change and is under investigation by the Force Investigation Division. At approximately 3 P.M. officers from the 111 Precinct were alerted to a male, who crashed his vehicle into a marked police SUV, which was parked and unoccupied in front of the 111 Precinct. The subject exited his vehicle and sprayed an accelerant fluid on the marked police vehicles and then sprayed the fluid on his own vehicle. The subject then set his vehicle on fire. At this time 111 Precinct officers exited the stationhouse and approached the subject. The subject brandished a knife and charged at the officers. Two officers discharged their firearms several times and struck the subject multiple times on his torso and leg. A 12 inch kitchen knife was recovered on the scene, and the subject was removed by EMS to New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Queens and is in stable condition. Two officers were removed to North Shore Manhasset Hospital for an evaluation.
Attorney General James' Health Care Helpline Recovers More Than $2 Million In Restitution And Savings For Consumers
New Report Shows Health Care Bureau’s Free Investigative Helpline Handled Almost 2,000 Cases for New Yorkers Improperly Billed and Denied Benefits In 2018
Attorney General Letitia James today released a report detailing the work of the Office of the Attorney General’s Health Care Bureau’s Helpline, a free service offered by the office that handled almost 2,000 consumer complaints during the past year – saving or returning more than $2.3 million in health care expenses to consumers. The service has also helped countless New Yorkers access medically necessary care or prescription medication previously denied to them.
“Health care is a basic right that all New Yorkers should have access to,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “This hotline has been an invaluable tool in helping us protect New Yorkers and ensure that they get the care they deserve and are not taken advantage of. If you believe you are being improperly billed or denied health care benefits, I urge you to reach out to our office for support."
The Health Care Bureau’s 2018 Annual Report, Real Solutions for Real New Yorkers, details the work of Helpline advocates to resolve consumer complaints, and discusses some of the major cases handled by the bureau.
The Attorney General’s toll-free HCB Helpline – 800-428-9071 – is available for New Yorkers to report and resolve health care complaints and concerns ranging from simple payment processing errors to complex deceptive business practices. Consumers can also use the Attorney General’s online complaint form to lodge a complaint.
During 2018, Helpline staff handled 1,961 consumer complaints and provided another 2,389 consumers with information or referred them to an appropriate agency for assistance. These consumer complaints include issues such as incorrect medical billing, wrongful health plan rejection, improper processing of health insurance claims, and wrongful termination of health insurance.
- In one case, a consumer contacted the Helpline because she was essentially homebound. The company she had sent her wheelchair to for repair more than five months earlier had not returned the chair. After a Helpline advocate intervened, the repair company delivered the wheelchair to the consumer in less than a week after she contacted the Helpline.
- In another case, a consumer contacted the Helpline regarding her health plan’s denial of coverage for a drug recently approved by the FDA to treat Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Once a Helpline advocate intervened, the medication was approved.
- A consumer contacted the Helpline because her health plan paid for the surgery for implantation of a loop recorder that was recommended by her cardiac specialist to monitor her heart, while denying coverage of the actual recorder as experimental/investigation, leaving the consumer with a bill for over $11,000. The health plan reversed its denial of coverage after the Helpline advocate’s intervention.
- After receiving a complaint that EmblemHealth improperly denied coverage of gender reassignment surgery to a member based on failure to meet EmblemHealth’s unlawful criteria, the HCB conducted an investigation finding that EmblemHealth’s Gender Reassignment Guidelines were outdated and not evidence-based during the time they remained in effect, and that Emblemhealth provided misleading and deceptive information to plan members indicating that the Guidelines were based on current clinical information and standard medical guidelines when they were not. As part of a settlement agreement, EmblemHealth updated its Gender Reassignment Surgery Guideline and agreed to provide restitution to members improperly denied coverage for gender reassignment surgery, and pay $250,000 in civil penalties to New York State.
- As a result of last year’s benchmark settlement with The Brooklyn Hospital Medical Center (“Brooklyn Hospital”), which was initiated after the HCB received a complaint that a survivor of sexual assault was billed seven separate times for a forensic rape examination (“FRE”) administered in Brooklyn Hospital’s emergency room, the HCB initiated an ongoing investigation into the improper billing practices of New York hospitals for FREs. This ongoing investigation has led to agreements with six New York hospitals and a university to pay restitution to patients and change billing procedures for FREs. The facilities include Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center, Columbia University, Montefiore Nyack Hospital, New York Presbyterian/Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Richmond University Medical Center, and St. Barnabas Hospital. The investigation found pervasive failures to advise patients of their payment options, and widespread unlawful billing of sexual assault survivors. The ongoing investigation has already revealed at least 200 unlawfully billed FREs at the seven settling hospitals. Under the terms of the agreements, the hospitals will implement written policies to ensure that sexual assault survivors do not receive bills for their FREs, provide full restitution to any improperly billed sexual assault survivors, and pay costs.
While not all complaints can be resolved favorably, the Helpline can often provide reliable, objective information. Additionally, Helpline advocates work to ensure that any negative effects from improper medical billing or insurance claims are removed from credit reports.
The complaints handled by the Helpline highlight the challenges faced by New York health care consumers and are an important means of identifying systemic problems in New York’s health care system. These complaints often provide the basis for further investigation and enforcement actions as indicated above in the EmblemHealth and New York Hospital FRE investigations.
Consumers who believe that they may have been treated unfairly by a health care provider, HMO or insurance plan, or health-related business should contact the Attorney General’s Health Care Helpline by either calling the Helpline at 1-800-428-9071, or by submitting a complaint form online or by mail. The online complaint form is easy for consumers to submit and can be accessed from the HCB website at the link provided here. Instructions for submitting a complaint form by mail are also provided on the website.
Attorney General James Takes Down Leaders Of Cocaine Trafficking Ring In Capital Region “Operation Off-Broadway”
Defendants Were Looking To Take Over The Cocaine Trade In The North Country Just Months After Being Paroled Out Of Federal Prison On Narcotics Trafficking Convictions
Attorney General Letitia James announced the guilty pleas of Tremel Rosario and Matthew Malu, the leaders of a large-scale narcotics trafficking ring. Rosario, originally from the Bronx, pleaded guilty Friday in front of Saratoga County Court Judge James A. Murphy III to Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Second Degree, a class A-2 felony. On May 24, 2019, it is expected that he will be sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by 5 years of post-release supervision. Malu, originally from Queens, pleaded guilty Friday in front of Judge Murphy to Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, a class B felony. On May 24, 2019, it is expected that he will be sentenced to 12 years in prison followed by 3 years of post-release supervision.
“These two individuals were the leaders of a drug ring that flooded the Capital Region with illicit drugs that take lives and harm our communities,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “Let their conviction serve as a loud and clear message: we will not take drug trafficking lightly and will hold those responsible to the fullest extent of the law.”
A thirteen-month investigation revealed that Tremel Rosario and Matthew Malu, central figures in this cocaine distribution network, partnered together to set up a cocaine distribution operation in Saratoga and Warren Counties. Both Rosario and Malu, Albany-based cocaine traffickers, set up shop using workers in several different cocaine distribution locations in Saratoga and Warren Counties. These workers would sell their cocaine throughout the day and night, and would call Rosario and/or Malu when they were running out of cocaine, and then Rosario, Malu or a drug “mule” hired by Rosario and Malu would run additional cocaine up to the workers.
Both Rosario and Malu were convicted of conspiracy to distribute cocaine in federal district court in 2014 and were sentenced to 5 years in federal prison, after having been caught on federal wiretaps running a similar cocaine trafficking operation in Messina, New York. Both men partnered up again shortly after being paroled out of federal custody, setting up their cocaine trafficking operation in Saratoga and Warren Counties. This time, it was the New York State Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force that captured the duo over wiretaps, only months after having been paroled, engaged in nearly identical illegal behavior.
The investigation, conducted by the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force, the Schenectady County Sheriff’s Office, the Warren County Sheriff’s Office, the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Albany Police Department, the Glens Falls Police Department, the United States Office of Probation and Pre-Trial Services, the City of Watervliet Police Department and the New York National Guard Counterdrug Task Force, led to the indictment of 30 people, all of whom have now pled guilty with the exception of one defendant that still has an active warrant for his arrest. The charges against that defendant are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.