Federal judge agrees to delay the sentencing of two former Christie administration officials convicted in the George Washington Bridge lane closure scheme for three weeks.
NEWARK--The sentencing of two former Christie administration officials charged in the Bridgegate political scandal has been postponed until next month.
Attorneys for Bill Baroni, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Bridget Anne Kelly, who served as a deputy chief of staff to Gov. Chris Christie, sought to have the sentencing delayed because they said they needed more time to review pre-sentencing reports in the case.
Prosecutors did not oppose the request.
In a filing in federal court in Newark, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Wigenton agreed to a nearly three-week delay, setting a new sentencing date of March 13 at 11 a.m.
The two were convicted in November for their roles in shutting down several local toll lanes at the George Washington Bridge in September 2013, in a scheme of political retribution. Prosecutors said the plan was meant to cause major traffic tie-ups to punish Fort Lee's Democratic mayor after he declined to endorse Christie, a Republican, for re-election.
Baroni and Kelly face up to 20 years in prison, but will likely not serve anywhere near that amount of time under federal sentence guidelines.
How long could Kelly and Baroni serve?
The key witness against them was David Wildstein, a Republican operative and former Port Authority officials who acknowledged he was the one who came up with the lane closure idea as a point of leverage against Mayor Mark Sokolich, and testified that both Baroni and Kelly helped him put it in play. He pleaded guilty but has yet to be sentenced.
Wildstein said he cleared the lane closure plan with Kelly, who he said was his main point of contact with the governor's office. He told the jury that Baroni helped him put it in play.
Christie has repeatedly said he did not know about the lane closures beforehand. He was never charged with any wrongdoing.
Attorneys for Baroni and Kelly, meanwhile, are seeking a new trial, arguing the judge erred when she ruled that prosecutors did not have to show that the scheme that shut down toll lanes was intended as political retribution. At the same time, they argued that the government did not prove its case.
Attorney Michael Critchley, who is representing Kelly, also argued that the convictions on civil rights deprivation counts should be dismissed because no legal precedent exists to justify the charges.
The U.S. Attorney's Office has rejected calls for a re-trial, arguing in court filings that the defense was seeking to re-litigate the court's earlier decisions after the jury found them guilty.
Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Facebook: @TedSherman.reporter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.