Calabrese Sr.: 'Them are lies!'
FAMILY SECRETS | Focus turns to murders
As a federal prosecutor described to jurors Tuesday how reputed Outfit hit man Frank Calabrese Sr. left "a trail of bodies" in his wake, the pugnacious loan shark sat up ramrod straight and bellowed: "Them are lies!"
The outburst capped a day of arguments as prosecutors reviewed a sordid history of slit throats, dumped corpses and slain innocents as part of the 18 murders charged in the Family Secrets indictment.
Attorneys for four mobsters -- Calabrese Sr., Joseph "Joey the Clown" Lombardo, James "Little Jimmy" Marcello and Paul "The Indian" Schiro -- argued that while the jury found their clients guilty of racketeering on Monday, they weren't killers.
After reaching verdicts in the first part of the case, jurors now have to determine if any of the four men are liable for any of the 18 murders in the indictment. If a defendant is held accountable for even one murder, it would likely mean life in prison.
Calabrese Sr. leads the hit parade, accused of 13 mob murders. Marcello is accused of three, while Lombardo and Schiro are each accused of one.
Calabrese Sr.'s attorney, Joseph Lopez, said the main government witness against him, his brother, Outfit killer Nicholas Calabrese, testified like a trained seal.
Prosecutor Mitch Mars noted Calabrese Sr. was secretly caught on tape extensively detailing several Outfit murders he committed.
The testimony of Nicholas Calabrese on how they committed murders lined up with his brother's admissions on the tapes.
Nicholas Calabrese never heard the tapes, so both men would have to make the same lies, on the same topics, Mars said.
Frank Calabrese Sr. "has left a trail of bodies, literally ..." Mars said.
"Them are lies!" Calabrese Sr. interrupted.
"... during his career with the Outfit," Mars finished.