He'd been convicted of trying to cover up an assault by former police chief James Burke, Spota's top. The defense took aim at Hickey, who retired shortly before pleading guilty in 2016 to conspiracy to obstruct justice, and who told jurors he is hoping for leniency at his future sentencing because of his role as a cooperating prosecution witness. Prosecutors want a federal judge to deny bail for ex-Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota and his former aide while . The former chief pleaded guilty to reduced charges in February 2016. Azrack explained Tuesday that she was intentionally punishing the defendants with more prison time than Burke received. Thomas Spota - RiverheadLOCAL [14], The federal inquiry subsequently expanded beyond Burke to investigate a broader pattern of corruption in both the police department and the office of the Suffolk County district attorney, Thomas J. No other witness testified to receiving direct orders from Mr. Spota or Mr. McPartland to obstruct the investigation, defense lawyers argued. All rights reserved. The government also claimed McPartland was the "architect of the lies," helping Burke craft a story about Loeb being a "junkie thief" who fabricated his tale of an assault a script everyone who became part of the conspiracy had to follow. Jurors delivered their verdict after about seven hours of deliberations in the sixth week of the trial, with the panels forewoman saying later in an interview that that law should apply equally to everyone. Spota and McPartland were both convicted on all charges, John Marzulli, a spokesman for the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney's Office, said. Instead of serving the people of Suffolk County, these defendants brazenly abused their exceptional positions of power and public trust to protect their friends and hurt their enemies. The two remained close during Burke's rise, which culminated in 2012 when he was elevated to the top position in a department with more than 2,500 . Is the Riverhead IDA serving the publics interest? First Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Boeckmann said in court Tuesday that Spota still hadn't apologized for actions that had "an absolute chilling effect" on the county's criminal justice system and implored the judge to impose prison time. Updated. ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. A jury found them guilty of witness tampering, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy after they pressured witnesses not to cooperate with an FBI investigation into the 2012 assault, abc7ny.com said. Spota hugged his wife and his weeping daughter before leaving the courtroom in silence.