Opinion
19 Cr. 67 (PGG)
10-13-2021
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. SUSAN HAMMATT, Defendant.
ORDER
HONORABLE PAUL G. GARDEPHE UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
WHEREAS, defendant SUSAN HAMMATT wishes to plead guilty before a Magistrate Judge;
WHEREAS, in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and based on defendant SUSAN HAMMATT's request, the proceeding is scheduled to take place remotely; and
WHEREAS, the Court understands that the assigned Magistrate Judge shall hear the defendant's plea by telephone because videoconferencing is not reasonably available;
WHEREAS, the CARES Act and findings made by the Judicial Conference of the United States and Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain of the Southern District of New York allow for guilty pleas to be taken by phone or video, subject to certain findings made by the presiding District Judge;
WHEREAS, the proposed guilty plea resolves the above-captioned case for defendant SUSAN HAMMATT without a plea to all charges alleged in the indictment, and the offense of conviction carries no mandatory minimum sentence and thus it is possible that the Court may impose a sentence of time served.
THE COURT HEREBY FINDS, that because the defendant, after consultation with counsel, has consented to proceeding remotely, the plea proceeding cannot be further delayed without serious harm to the interests of justice.
SO ORDERED: