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Juicy D. Links · 08-22-2005, 08:06 PM

Testifying against John A. Gotti today, Curtis Sliwa, the founder of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group, described in vivid detail being shot at point-blank range while sitting in the back seat of a taxicab 13 years ago.

Mr. Sliwa relived the shooting before a jury in Federal District Court in Manhattan, where Mr. Gotti, 41, the scion of the Gambino crime family, is being tried on racketeering charges.

Mr. Gotti is facing a 42-page indictment including securities fraud, loansharking, construction industry extortion, and charges of conspiracy to kidnap Mr. Sliwa. He was indicted in July on charges of ordering the retaliatory attack on Mr. Sliwa after the Guardian Angels founder denounced Mr. Gotti's father, the late crime boss, on his radio program.

Mr. Gotti has said that he now repudiates his past life.

Mr. Sliwa, who wore the signature red beret and jacket of his group, told reporters outside the courtroom today that he had "waited 13 years for this day," adding, "I'm ready to get it on."

Inside the courtroom, Mr. Sliwa described what took place the morning of June 19, 1992.

The witness said that he came out of his apartment on the Lower East Side a little late, after stopping to pick up a newspaper. He said he hailed a cab and thought at first that he had "hit the lotto," because the driver appeared to know where he was headed, to the WABC-AM studios near Madison Square Garden.

But the driver turned east instead of west, Mr. Sliwa said, and he soon knew that something was very wrong. A man wearing an "Irish cab driver's cap" and a handkerchief covering his face like "the old Wild West" popped up in the front seat "like a jack-in-the-box," he said, and pointed a silver-plated pistol at him.

"This has got to be a nightmare," Mr. Sliwa said he thought to himself. "I haven't woken up yet."

Moments later, Mr. Sliwa said, the gunman fired the first of several shots. As he testified, Mr. Sliwa put his hands together and leaned over the front of the jury box to show the jurors how the gunman pointed his pistol down on him from the front seat of the cab.

The witness said that he had no sensation of the shots at first, but soon saw blood pouring out from under his shirt. Then there were other shots, and he began screaming in pain, Mr. Sliwa said, describing the sensation in his legs as "like a knife through hot butter." He made an emergency call on his Motorola radio, calling out "Code red, angel one," he said, to alert the Guardian Angels that he was in danger.

Mr. Sliwa said he realized that although both windows in the back seat were closed and there were no handles on either door, when the taxi swerved on a sharp turn, a breeze came in the front right window. He decided to "use the backseat like a trampoline," he said, to propel himself over the shoulder of the gunman and halfway out the window.

The witness said that his face was so close to the front tire that he could feel the pebbles hitting his cheeks as his head hung near the pavement and the taxi sped down the street. The gunman tried to pull him back in by his belt, Mr. Sliwa said, but his clothing was caught on the bumper of a parked car and he was yanked the rest of the way out of the window, crashing down onto the street.

An emergency medical team came shortly afterward, Mr. Sliwa said, describing the pain from the shots as so intense that he was "screaming in the middle of the street." He underwent emergency surgery, but said that he has lasting daily pain as a result of the "tremendous damage" to his stomach and digestive tract.

Mr. Sliwa's account of the attack confirmed in many details a description given last week in the courtroom by Joseph D'Angelo, 36, a former Gambino soldier who had confessed to being the driver of the cab. But his testimony differed from that of Mr. D'Angelo when he described the crucial first minutes. Mr. Sliwa said he hailed the cab, while Mr. D'Angelo testified that Mr. Sliwa surprised him by hopping in.

Mr. D'Angelo also testified that Mr. Gotti had said that his father, John J. Gotti, gave the original order to attack Mr. Sliwa from the federal prison where he was serving a life sentence for racketeering. The father and son were both angered that Mr. Sliwa had called them thugs and crooks on the radio.

08-22-2005, 08:06 PM
Juicy D. Links So Fucking Banned Industry Role: Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: N.Y. -Long Island -- Posts: 122,992	Testifying against John A. Gotti today, Curtis Sliwa, the founder of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group, described in vivid detail being shot at point-blank range while sitting in the back seat of a taxicab 13 years ago. Mr. Sliwa relived the shooting before a jury in Federal District Court in Manhattan, where Mr. Gotti, 41, the scion of the Gambino crime family, is being tried on racketeering charges. Mr. Gotti is facing a 42-page indictment including securities fraud, loansharking, construction industry extortion, and charges of conspiracy to kidnap Mr. Sliwa. He was indicted in July on charges of ordering the retaliatory attack on Mr. Sliwa after the Guardian Angels founder denounced Mr. Gotti's father, the late crime boss, on his radio program. Mr. Gotti has said that he now repudiates his past life. Mr. Sliwa, who wore the signature red beret and jacket of his group, told reporters outside the courtroom today that he had "waited 13 years for this day," adding, "I'm ready to get it on." Inside the courtroom, Mr. Sliwa described what took place the morning of June 19, 1992. The witness said that he came out of his apartment on the Lower East Side a little late, after stopping to pick up a newspaper. He said he hailed a cab and thought at first that he had "hit the lotto," because the driver appeared to know where he was headed, to the WABC-AM studios near Madison Square Garden. But the driver turned east instead of west, Mr. Sliwa said, and he soon knew that something was very wrong. A man wearing an "Irish cab driver's cap" and a handkerchief covering his face like "the old Wild West" popped up in the front seat "like a jack-in-the-box," he said, and pointed a silver-plated pistol at him. "This has got to be a nightmare," Mr. Sliwa said he thought to himself. "I haven't woken up yet." Moments later, Mr. Sliwa said, the gunman fired the first of several shots. As he testified, Mr. Sliwa put his hands together and leaned over the front of the jury box to show the jurors how the gunman pointed his pistol down on him from the front seat of the cab. The witness said that he had no sensation of the shots at first, but soon saw blood pouring out from under his shirt. Then there were other shots, and he began screaming in pain, Mr. Sliwa said, describing the sensation in his legs as "like a knife through hot butter." He made an emergency call on his Motorola radio, calling out "Code red, angel one," he said, to alert the Guardian Angels that he was in danger. Mr. Sliwa said he realized that although both windows in the back seat were closed and there were no handles on either door, when the taxi swerved on a sharp turn, a breeze came in the front right window. He decided to "use the backseat like a trampoline," he said, to propel himself over the shoulder of the gunman and halfway out the window. The witness said that his face was so close to the front tire that he could feel the pebbles hitting his cheeks as his head hung near the pavement and the taxi sped down the street. The gunman tried to pull him back in by his belt, Mr. Sliwa said, but his clothing was caught on the bumper of a parked car and he was yanked the rest of the way out of the window, crashing down onto the street. An emergency medical team came shortly afterward, Mr. Sliwa said, describing the pain from the shots as so intense that he was "screaming in the middle of the street." He underwent emergency surgery, but said that he has lasting daily pain as a result of the "tremendous damage" to his stomach and digestive tract. Mr. Sliwa's account of the attack confirmed in many details a description given last week in the courtroom by Joseph D'Angelo, 36, a former Gambino soldier who had confessed to being the driver of the cab. But his testimony differed from that of Mr. D'Angelo when he described the crucial first minutes. Mr. Sliwa said he hailed the cab, while Mr. D'Angelo testified that Mr. Sliwa surprised him by hopping in. Mr. D'Angelo also testified that Mr. Gotti had said that his father, John J. Gotti, gave the original order to attack Mr. Sliwa from the federal prison where he was serving a life sentence for racketeering. The father and son were both angered that Mr. Sliwa had called them thugs and crooks on the radio.