Easton NAACP Prez Acquitted on Theft Charges

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Easton Barristers Josh Fulmer, Colin Monahan & Phil Lauer

John Moses Robinson, President of the Easton NAACP and Prison Advisory Board member, has been acquitted of criminal charges that he stole $55,000 from his mother-in-law. A jury of 9 women and 3 men reached a "not guilty" verdict last night, after a four-day trial. They deliberated for little more than an hour.

Robinson's estranged wife thought she'd be getting that money, even though her mother actually lived with Robinson and his three children.

"I have been told we have a verdict, although I don't know what it is," Judge Michael Koury announced as he came into the courtroom.

While everyone waited for the jury, an apprehensive Robinson sat next to lawyers Phil Lauer and Colin Monahan. Robinson's children sat in the row behind their Dad. Five deputy sheriffs were strategically located throughout the courtroom.

While waiting, onlookers whispered to each other about just when the jury left to deliberate, 6:15 PM or 6:25 PM. "The jury went out to deliberate at 6:11 PM," answered Judge Koury. "The acoustics in this room are excellent!"

Either that, or he has superpowers.

Veteran prosecutor Mike Filingo arrived a few minutes before the jury, with a disgusted look on his face. He seemed to sense he had a loser.

There were three charges, so the jury's foreman had to answer "Not Guilty" three times. But as soon as he announced the first "Not guilty" verdict, there was a visible sign of relief from the largely pro-Robinson crowd.

After announcing their verdicts, Judge Koury thanked the jury. "Thank you for staying here late tonight. You have arrived early and stayed late. You have served the County of Northampton very well and you are free to go." He then turned to Robinson. "Mr. Robinson, you have been found Not Guilty by a jury of your peers. You are free to go."

It was only then that Robinson, dressed in his finest, began to really cry. Turning around, he reached out for his children and they all hugged each other. His nightmare is finally over.

Normally very talkative, a very relieved Robinson had few words after the verdict. Joined by his children, he quickly left the courthouse.

All the might and power of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania had been brought to bear against him. That even included Northampton County Controller Steve Barron. I knew he already considers himself a County Executive, asbestos investigator and union organizer. Apparently, he's a criminal investigator, too. Although absent for the verdict, rendered at dinner time, the $65,000 per year Controller spent the entire week sitting in on this trial.

How can Barron audit the DA's office when he works for them? Isn't that a built-in conflict? And while he's running around playing detective, who's minding the finances of Northampton County?

At the magistrate's level, Barron essentially usurped the fact finding role reserved to juries. In addition to detailing Robinson's bank transactions, Barron would add they were "interesting," raised red flags and even revealed a "veil of deceit."

Thanks to a good defense team and a fair prosecutor, this nonsense stopped once a jury got involved. Lead defense attorney Phil Lauer, objecting to Barron's qualifications as some kind of fraud expert, filed a motion in limine to preclude the County's supposed fiscal watchdog from essentially telling the jury that Robinson is guilty.

After some initial opposition, prosecutor Filingo agreed, especially since it appeared likely that Judge Koury would rule in Lauer's favor anyway. To his credit, Filingo kept Barron on a tight leash during the trial, shutting the Controller down when he still tried to stray into matters that are beyond his competence.

As a result, Barron had little to say.

You might say justice was done because Robinson was innocent anyway ... or because he had good character witnesses ... or because a jury saw through Robinson's estranged wife, who wanted that money for herself. You might even be right.

I say justice has nothing to do with it. Robinson won because he had a good legal team.

Easton lawyers Phil Lauer, Josh Fulmer and Colin Monahan did a great job in jury selection, making sure that the jury of Robinson's peers actually included three African Americans. And 9 women? That's obviously because Lauer was going to argue that this was a "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" case, as opposed to a criminal matter. Although it's hard to generalize, you do that in jury selection, and women do tend to be tougher on each other than they are on men.

In addition to picking a sympathetic jury, Lauer effectively clipped the Controller's wings.

If the Commonwealth ever decides all its resources down on you, it helps to be innocent. But you better have a good lawyer, too. Fortunately, Robinson had one of the best.

Colin Monahan, incidentally, is the son of another good criminal defense lawyer, Brian Monahan. This was Colin's first criminal trial. I told him to quit now and he can claim he is undefeated.