Former U. student may be paroled soon

A federal judge knocked two years off the 17-year sentence of convicted drug trafficker Alexander Moskovits yesterday and restructured the sentence so the former Wharton student will be eligible for parole in four months. Moskovits was convicted on 18 federal drug counts in September 1988 for overseeing the trafficking of 50 kilograms of cocaine, at least 10 kilograms of which were funneled through the University during his four years as an undergraduate. Moskovits was up for resentencing yesterday because U.S. District Court Judge Louis Pollak wiped out Moscovits' 17-year sentence last September, ruling that a previous conviction in Mexico was illegally considered during the original sentencing. Under federal sentencing guidelines that cover second-time offenders, Pollak was forced to give Moskovits a 10-year prison term for cocaine posession on top of a seven-year sentence for conspiracy at his original sentencing in 1988. But because the Mexican conviction was not valid -- Moskovits was not represented by an attorney during crucial parts of his trial -- the former Wharton student was resentenced as a first-time offender at yesterday's three-and-one-half hour hearing. The new sentence includes only a five-year term for posession of cocaine to go along with the seven-year conspiracy sentence. Pollak added a three-year sentence through a separate count. More importantly, however, the time Moskovits must spend in prison before he is eligible for parole was cut in half. Originally, he was forced to wait 10 years, but the new sentence requires only five. Moskovits' attorney William Kunstler had originally sought a seven-year total prison term, through which Moskovits would serve the five and seven year sentences concurrently. But Kunstler said he was pleased with the ruling anyway. "While it seems like only a two year change, it really is an opening for parole," he said after the hearing. "It's not something to sneeze at." Because Moskovits has already served four years and eight months of his sentence, he will be eligible for parole in four months. Kunstler added, however, that he does not feel Moskovits will be released at his first parole hearing. "He won't get it at his first crack, but he might get it at his second crack," the famed civil liberties attorney said. During the afternoon hearing in Judge Pollak's 16th floor courtroom in the federal building on Sixth and Market streets, Kunstler, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristin Hayes and Moskovits were all allowed to present arguments to Pollak. Kunstler went first, and although his statement wandered to touch on Martin Luther King, Jr., The Merchant of Venice, Michael Milken and the Persian Gulf War, he focused on Moskovits' exemplary prison record, submitting numerous commendations from prison officials. "Moskovits' devoted services at no cost to our institution have certainly saved the federal government several thousand dollars," Kunstler said, reading from a letter written by a prison official at Talladega Federal Correctional Institution. "Mr. Moskovits is an asset to our education department." He noted that Moskovits teaches English to Hispanic inmates and translates books for the prison. Giving Moskovits a shorter prison term and longer probation sentence "would give society a chance at a superbly intelligent man," Kunstler concluded. Hayes' presentation was more formal, and she focused on the severity and violent nature of many of the crimes, asking for the sentence to remain the same. "This is a defendant who is a very evil person," Hayes said. "He is more evil than the average drug dealer." "This is a defendant who, while attending the Wharton School, used what he learned to operate an illicit business," she added. "He dealt drugs on a very large scale." Hayes asserted that Moskovits' exemplary prison record is irrelevant because Moskovits must be resentenced as if he were just convicted. "It's just giving him a benefit that other people don't enjoy," Hayes said. Finally, Moskovits himself rose to testify, and after a lengthy discourse on the legal underpinnings of his case, he attempted to show the judge that he felt remorse. "It's very difficult for me to express myself in a public forum," Moskovits said. "I don't like beating my own chest in front of a judge." He also read a poem that included the lines, "I shall begin anew, that is my resolve," "I shall leave all sins behind," and "I shall wear new clothes and a new soul." Pollak's ruling was a mixture of both sides' requests. He acknowledged Hayes' assertion that Moskovits did not seem remorseful for what he had done, but agreed with Kunstler that the 29-year-old's prison record should be taken into account.

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