Indicted Congressman Collins Undecided on Reelection Bid as Insider Trading Trial Looms
"I will tell you, if I do [run] I am confident that I will win," Collins said following his latest appearance in Manhattan federal court. "That's a decision for a later date."
September 12, 2019 at 03:22 PM
3 minute read
U.S. Rep. Christopher Collins, R-New York, said Thursday that he had not decided if he would run for reelection to Congress next year, as a February trial date in his insider-trading case seemed uncertain.
"I will tell you, if I do [run] I am confident that I will win," he said following his latest appearance in Manhattan federal court. "That's a decision for a later date."
The four-term Republican congressman from Western New York on Thursday pleaded not guilty to a new indictment alleging securities and wire fraud related to Innate Immunotherapeutics, an Australian biotech company where he served on the board of directors.
Collins' son, Cameron Collins, and another defendant were also arraigned on the superseding indictment, with both men pleading not guilty to the revised charges. The three were first charged last August in connection with the alleged insider-trading scheme.
The new indictment, filed Aug. 6, removed three of the original securities fraud counts and trimmed securities fraud charges against Cameron Collins in an effort to speed up the case, which is scheduled for trial in February in the Southern District of New York.
"The government has made these modifications to the original Indictment in an effort to avoid unnecessary pretrial litigation that could delay the resolution of this matter, including the possibility of an interlocutory appeal," U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said in a letter to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick last month.
In a hearing that stretched on for nearly two hours, attorney Jonathan Brian New said Collins' defense lawyers had not yet decided if they would appeal a recent ruling that denied them access to materials they claimed would show investigators violated Collins' rights under the Constitution's speech or bebate clause, which protects members of Congress from prosecution based on statements they make as a part of legislative activities.
Prosecutors, however, expressed concern that an interlocutory appeal would be used as a tool for delaying the trial.
Whether Collins pursues the appeal could have a significant impact on how the rest of the case plays out.
Broderick said a separate trial, scheduled for April, would likely take up months of his time, and that any delay could push back trial in Collins' case until next summer, at the earliest. Broderick, who repeated his preference for a February trial date, pondered aloud whether the two other defendants could be severed from the case and tried apart from Collins, if need be.
"I would want to preserve that trial date, whether that's three defendants or two," he said.
All three defendants said they wanted to be tried collectively.
After the hearing, Collins, an early supporter of President Donald Trump, said he would likely announce his decision regarding his reelection campaign in December. The congressional primary is scheduled for next June, with the general election to follow in November 2020.
Last August, Collins announced that he would suspend his bid for a fourth congressional term in the wake of of the insider trading allegations, but later resumed his campaign, narrowly winning reelection to the House.
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