Judge acquits Defendant of Menacing And Weapon Charges after a 3-day trial.

On May 7, 2008, the Defendant was found “Not Guilty” of all criminal charges stemming from an alleged attack by him against a neighbor with a machete. The Defendant was charged with Menacing and Criminal Possession of a Weapon regarding an incident that occurred on Saturday, September 9, 2006 immediately outside the Defendant’s home which is attached to the home of the Complaining Witness. The testimony revealed a long on-going dispute between the two families which culminated with words between the Defendant’s father and the Complainant wherein the Defendant was arrested and accused of coming out of his home with a machete and threatening his neighbor. The Police arrived and described a disorderly and violent crowd outside the Defendant’s house and the Police went inside and retrieved a machete which was introduced into evidence. Attorney Todd D. Greenberg attacked the credibility of the Witness and pointed out to the Court that on cross-examination two of the three witnesses testified that the Defendant never left the doorway of his home and did not exit his home, as the District Attorney alleged, to go after the Complainant. Further, after comparison of the testimony of the three alleged eye-witnesses, it was pointed out to the Court that there were major inconsistencies and that the Court should conclude that the testimony is false. On an interesting note, evidence was introduced that in the Indo Caribbean community, a machete, also known as “cutlass” is used for many things including cooking, gardening and as a household utensil. That argument was used to explain the presence of a machete in the Defendant’s house.