Expose Wins Day in Court
By Jason Boog
jasonboog@judicialstudies.com
Posted 10-23-2008
A probe by Judicial Reports finally ends a couple's long legal odyssey.
Laurie and Salvatore Occhipinti ended a long, strange journey through the Queens County Family Court yesterday, a development that the plaintiff attributed directly to Judicial Reports’s exclusive coverage of the case.
A judge on Tuesday granted Laurie a yearlong order of protection against her ex-husband — a legal odyssey that took nearly one-and-a-half years, seven different appearances, and two different judges.
According to Laurie, Family Court Judge Salvatore J. Modica actually cited Judicial Reports coverage before ruling on the order. “The first thing he brought up was this article, he quoted a lot of quotes form the [Judicial Reports] article — he was defending himself,” she said.
“I’m relieved it’s all over. To be honest, I feel that this article helped me out.”
Earlier this month, Judicial Reports recounted how the Queens County Family Court had issued Occhipinti a temporary restraining order against her husband in mid-2007. By law, that temporary measure was to remain in effect until a judge officially ruled on the matter.
The ex-husband contested the order, but never got a chance to prove himself in court. The temporary order made it difficult for him to attend school functions or drop off his children near home.
Once the temporary order was set, Family Court Judge Rhea G. Friedman rescheduled the hearing on three separate occasions. Earlier this year, Friedman retired, sending the case to Judge Modica. On his docket, the matter was delayed three more times — finally resolved yesterday.
Both Modica's staff and the Supervising Judge of Queens County Family Court had deferred to David Bookstaver, spokesman for the Office of Court Administration. In an interview, Bookstaver said he was “glad to hear that the matter was resolved.”
Salvatore Occhipinti’s attorney did not return a call for comment.
“I wasted a lot of time and money and days off from work to be there,” said Laurie after the ruling.
“I’m not blaming anybody, but the court system wasn’t as organized as I thought it would be,” she said. “I hope with this article that somebody won’t go through the same thing that I did. Their situation might be more serious than mine.”
A judge on Tuesday granted Laurie a yearlong order of protection against her ex-husband — a legal odyssey that took nearly one-and-a-half years, seven different appearances, and two different judges.
According to Laurie, Family Court Judge Salvatore J. Modica actually cited Judicial Reports coverage before ruling on the order. “The first thing he brought up was this article, he quoted a lot of quotes form the [Judicial Reports] article — he was defending himself,” she said.
“I’m relieved it’s all over. To be honest, I feel that this article helped me out.”
Earlier this month, Judicial Reports recounted how the Queens County Family Court had issued Occhipinti a temporary restraining order against her husband in mid-2007. By law, that temporary measure was to remain in effect until a judge officially ruled on the matter.
The ex-husband contested the order, but never got a chance to prove himself in court. The temporary order made it difficult for him to attend school functions or drop off his children near home.
Once the temporary order was set, Family Court Judge Rhea G. Friedman rescheduled the hearing on three separate occasions. Earlier this year, Friedman retired, sending the case to Judge Modica. On his docket, the matter was delayed three more times — finally resolved yesterday.
Both Modica's staff and the Supervising Judge of Queens County Family Court had deferred to David Bookstaver, spokesman for the Office of Court Administration. In an interview, Bookstaver said he was “glad to hear that the matter was resolved.”
Salvatore Occhipinti’s attorney did not return a call for comment.
“I wasted a lot of time and money and days off from work to be there,” said Laurie after the ruling.
“I’m not blaming anybody, but the court system wasn’t as organized as I thought it would be,” she said. “I hope with this article that somebody won’t go through the same thing that I did. Their situation might be more serious than mine.”