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D’Elia

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An attorney for reputed mobster William “Billy” D’Elia filed a court motion today asking a judge to reduce D’Elia’s sentence by 48 months based on D’Elia’s deteriorating health.

The motion, filed by attorney James Swetz, comes on the heels of a motion filed by federal prosecutors, who have requested D’Elia’s sentence be reduced by 21 months based on his assistance in the prosecution Louis DeNaples and Robert Kulick.

D’Elia was sentenced in November 2008 to 108 months in prison for his guilty plea to conspiracy to commit money laundering and witness tampering. Federal prosecutors had reserved the right to seek a reduction of the sentence once D’Elia completed his cooperation in the DeNaples and Kulick prosecutions.

In his motion, Swetz said D’Elia “appreciates” that the government has sought a sentence reduction, but he feels the reduction should be much greater than what prosecutors have requested.

Swetz cites several instances in which D’Elia had to be rushed to the hospital to treat complications related to surgery to repair three hernias that was performed in June 2009.

Swetz also notes that D’Elia nearly died in July, when medical staff at a federal prison in Oklahoma gave him medication he was allergic to, despite the fact he had warned the staff he had an allergy to the medication.

For the complete story read Friday’s Times Leader