Godineaux Facing Life In Oz

Singer, who has been representing criminal defendants for 33 years, said his own personal experience visiting one of his clients in a prison cell sums up the violent nature of the prison experience.
"I went to give my client some positive information," he said. "Then he reached out and began strangling me. It took seven officers to restrain him."
Singer said the convicted criminal then asked him, "Why did those officers fight with me?"
The defense attorney said that despite what correction officials claim the prisons are filled with, psychotic prisoners who act unpredictably, explode into violent rage.
"Godineaux will be entering a world inhabited by a cross-section of gangs including the Aryans, Bloods and Muslims," Singer said.
He noted that if Godineaux is not part of one of the convict groups hell "have to watch his back at all times." Singer said its not unusual for someone waiting in line behind you to approach a convict and say, "get out of here, Im next in line, or suddenly spitting in your food and lure you into a fight."
The Kew Gardens attorney said that District Attorney Richard A. Brown made a good decision in sparing the county a trial and winning an agreement to put Godineaux away for life.
"Anything can happen during the course of a trial," Singer said. He said there is wide public misunderstanding of the procedure in a murder trial."There is a liability phase and a punishment phase," he said "The punishment phase is like a new trial with a looser structure."
Godineaux escaped death by lethal injection a punishment possible for his alleged partner John Taylorbecause state psychiatrists ruled he was mentally retarded. In New York State, a retarded defendant cannot be executed.
In Godineauxs last appearance in Kew Gardens Criminal Court on Feb. 21, he listened in silence as the relatives of the murdered Wendys employees raged at him in open court.
"You are a danger to society and not worthy of life," Godineaux was told by the mother of Anita Smith, one of the five slain Wendys employees.
She was followed by other grieving family members who castigated the killer. District Attorney Brown issued a statement after Justice Steven Fisher sentenced Godineaux to life in prison without parole.
"The sentencing this morning of Godineaux hopefully will bring some degree of comfort to the families and of the victimsand those who survived and their families.
"Godineaux will spend the rest of his natural life in prison. He will never be released from prison. He will spend his life in an upstate maximum security prison. As to him, there is finality."