The Manhattan district attorney’s office shouldn’t have been lured by the bright lights of Hollywood, former prosecutors told Metro yesterday.
The office starred in the documentary, “Sex Crimes Unit,” which can be seen on HBO. The show follows prosecutors as they litigate sex crime cases.
But the lead defense attorney for the two NYPD cops accused of rape is concerned prosecutors may have improperly discussed his clients’ case on air.
The sentencing of Kenneth Moreno and Franklin Mata, acquitted of rape in May but convicted of official misconduct, was postponed until Aug. 8. Their attorney, Joe Tacopina, is now reviewing never-aired footage in hopes of prompting a mistrial.
Former New York City prosecutors confided they were surprised to see attorneys from the DA’s office chatting so freely while the cameras were rolling. Former Brooklyn prosecutor Paul Callan said he would “absolutely not” have OK’d such a film.
“It’s very dangerous,” he said.
In fact, Callan said he himself carefully watched the HBO flick to see if prosecutors talked about one of his current cases:?He is defending meteorologist Heidi Jones, accused of lying about a Central Park attack.
“I wanted to see if my case was being discussed. And had it been discussed, I would have made the same motion that the attorneys did in the cop case,” he said.
Follow Alison Bowen on Twitter @AlisonatMetro
