3 January 2022: Cuomo Gets Free Pass from Manhattan DA for COVID Nursing Home Deaths Cover-up

Manhattan DA won’t charge Cuomo in nursing home probe, lawyer says

Discouraging news from New York:

Prosecutors in Manhattan have concluded former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo did not break the law when his administration misled the public about the number of Covid-19 deaths tied to nursing homes, the Democrat’s former attorney said on Monday.

Elkan Abramowitz, who served as outside counsel to Cuomo’s office, said in a statement that the former governor was told Monday by the head of the Manhattan district attorney’s Elder Abuse Unit that the office had completed a “thorough investigation“ and would not bring charges.

“As we have said all along — there was no evidence to suggest that any laws were broken,” Abramowitz said in the statement.

The district attorney’s office did not immediately return request for comment. It was unclear if the decision was made under DA Alvin Bragg, who took office Saturday, or predecessor Cyrus Vance.

Translation: Under New York's state laws, it's okay for the Governor of New York to lie to the public and to lawmakers about the full extent of deaths that may be attributed to their deadly policy directives, even if that means doctoring documents produced by officials the New York State Department of Health to comply with the governor's preferred political narrative. That we don't know which "profile in courage" prosecutor in the Manhattan DAs office made the decision says a lot about the quality of legal thinking involved.

New Manhattan DA dropped COVID nursing home probe of Cuomo: lawyer

The New York Post covers some of the reaction. Here's an extended excerpt:

“Letting Cuomo off the hook is a bad way to start 2022,” said Vivian Zayas, co-founder of Voices For Seniors, whose mother, Ana Martinez, died of COVID while in a nursing rehab facility.

“Fifteen thousand people lost their lives in nursing homes. It doesn’t look like prosecutors are taking this seriously. They’re basically protecting Cuomo.

“We are disappointed in our judicial system.”

And Assemblyman Ron Kim (D-Queens) said Cuomo isn’t out of the woods yet.

Kim, chairman of the Assembly Aging Committee, said he considered the ongoing probes by federal prosecutors and AG James more serious threats to Cuomo than the Manhattan DA’s inquiry.

“Cuomo used his executive power to suppress nursing home deaths while chasing a $5.1 million book deal. Sooner or later the truth will come out,” Kim said.

The feds’ probe is still examining the Cuomo administration’s actions relating to the nursing homes and other long-term care facilities after thousands of their residents died from COVID-19.