Attorney Who Requested to Represent Trump But Was Denied Dies Unexpectedly at Age 48

New York defense attorney and Pace University professor John Meringolo died “unexpectedly” on Nov. 16 after two months earlier asking for him to pay the Trump Organization and Trump Payroll Corp at the last minute. of former President Donald Trump.

Meringolo told the judge in another case — the retrial of alleged We Build the Wall con man Timothy Shea, who is accused of cheating donors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars — that he was hired by the Trump family to defend their companies after CFO Allen Weisselberg pleaded guilty in a deal that required him to testify in the case.

“I have been assigned to represent Trump Payroll Corporation in their criminal trial scheduled to begin the same day as Mr. Shea’s retrial,” Meringolo wrote to Judge Analisa Torres on Sept. 14, asking her to extend the Shea case by three weeks move. according to the New York Daily News. This request was rejected.

On Sept. 2, Meringolo asked Manhattan Superior Court Justice Juan Merchan to delay the trial of Trump companies and was also denied.

“This application that I received last week, or the notice of appearance, was honestly almost bizarre and was handled appropriately,” Merchan said. “I repeat, we are not delaying this process.”

Meringolo’s death was confirmed by his father, Richard Meringolo, who told the Daily News it was unexpected.

“It’s appalling,” Richard Meringolo told the Daily News. “It’s a very sad day.”

John Meringolo had racked up numerous acquittals and trials on behalf of prominent clients, earning him a reputation as “the best prosecutor,” according to the Daily News.

“His professional accomplishments are unparalleled, but that didn’t define John,” his obituary reads. “John will always be remembered for the way he loved his family and friends and for the generosity he showed to everyone he met. He would often do anything to help complete strangers, knowing that a single kind gesture can go a long way. His greatest legacy will be his two sons, Charles and Anthony, whom he loved beyond measure.”

Veteran NYC defense attorney John Meringolo dies aged 48

Meringolo became a thorn in federal prosecutors’ side after defending notorious clients in several high-profile mafia, RICO, and large-scale narcotics cases.

— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) November 17, 2022

Meringolo was an adjunct professor at Pace University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law, teaching a course on litigation. The school’s website lists some of his most significant trial experiences:

Mr. Meringolo negotiated a historic $10,000,000.00 settlement for the estate of Joseph P. Graffagnino, a New York City firefighter who died in the infamous Deutsche Bank building fire. The building was damaged during the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The New York Daily News reported, “A document filed with the court says Meringolo will take 23% of the settlement, much less than the usual one-third cut.”

In United States v. Ofer Biton, Judge Nicholas Garaufis dismissed the government’s direct appeal and upheld the judge’s order to grant Mr. Biton, an Israeli national, bail after seven bail hearings.

In United States v. John Venizelos, in the Eastern District of New York, Mr. Venizelos pleaded guilty to involvement in a $1 billion international drug trafficking corporation that has been in existence for more than a decade.

In United States v. Yesid Rios Suarez, in the Southern District of New York, Mr. Rios Suarez pleaded guilty to participating in an international conspiracy to distribute cocaine from Colombia to Venezuela, Mexico and the United States.

In the case of United States v. Armando Rea, Mr. Rea was charged in a RICO indictment with the murder of Gerard Papa, a notorious member of the Genovese crime family; conspiracy to murder; and blackmail. After extensive movement exercises and prosecution defense investigations, the government dropped the murder count. Most importantly, after jury selection, the government dropped the RICO charge against Mr. Rea, who then pleaded guilty to a single charge of racketeering and received a suspended sentence.

After a three-week trial in the People v. Dr. Richard Lucente surrendered the Kings County District Attorney’s Office and dropped 151 C-Felony counts against Dr. Lucente, who subsequently pleaded guilty to a single count and received a prison sentence.

On December 1, 2009, the United States jury trial of John A. Gotti ended in a mistrial, ending Mr. Gotti’s four-trial saga. In the fourth and final trial, Mr. Gotti was charged with two murders for the first time and faced life imprisonment. After the murder trial, the government refused to press those murder charges or any other charges against him.

No cause of Meringolo’s death was reported. He was 48.