McMurray: no more delays with Collins’ sentencing
Chris Collins is asking for a fourth delay in his sentencing on insider trading. The former congressman from Clarence pleaded guilty on Oct. 1 to scheme to commit insider trading and to making false statements to federal law enforcement agents when interviewed about his conduct.
In January a federal judge sentenced Collins to 26 months in a federal prison. But Collins hasn’t been imprisoned yet. His lawyers have argued that he has a high risk of contracting the coronavirus.
“I have always believed that justice must be balanced with mercy, but Chris Collins has seen more mercy than most. Justice delayed is justice denied—he needs to go to jail now,” said Nate McMurray, who lost a close election to Collins in November 2018.
McMurray is seeking the position again. He lost another close election on June 23, this time to Chris Jacobs. That was to fill out the remainder of Collins’ term. The two will be on the ballot against each other again in November for a full two-year term.
The former congressman now lives in Florida. He also was sentenced to one year supervised release and a $200,000 fine. He resigned from his 27th Congressional District seat on Sept. 30, 2019.
“We have been here before. Hundreds of us wrote letters to implore the judge in Collins’ case to administer a fair sentence,” said Nate McMurray, who lost a close election to Collins in November 2018. “We watched his tearful pleas; the hammer of justice raised, but not brought down. Chris Collins now unapologetically claims the pandemic threatens this life and should prevent him from serving his prison sentence—it’s a twisted irony that he was the first supporter of President Trump in Congress, the man who so horribly mishandled the pandemic, which led to so many avoidable deaths across our country and especially in New York State.”
McMurray, in a statement to the media today, said Trump is pushing to reopen schools around the country, despite Covid-19 on the rise in many states.
“Trump and his ilk are also demanding that our schools open immediately, but that elections be delayed, and now that justice be delayed too,” McMurray said. “If our kids can go back to school, Chris Collins can pay his debt to society. He denied this region representation, and he lied to secure power and privilege. Politicians like Trump yell ‘law and order,’ but when it comes to their buddies, it’s a different story: Manafort, Stone, Flynn, and yes, Collins.”
