After being sentenced to five years in prison last week on a gun charge Barbara Sheehan is now faced with a more immediate fight as she waits for the appeal of her conviction to begin.
The public school secretary is likely to be fired from her job with the Department of Education within the next two weeks because of her felony conviction. Attorney Michael Dowd and the rest of her defense team is now trying to have her termination halted, pending the outcome of her upcoming appeal.
Sheehan faced a minimum of 27 months and a maximum of 15 years in prison as she stood before Justice Barry Kron, last Thursday. Prosecutor Debra Pomedore and Dowd presented their requests for sentencing, facing off in one last effort to influence the court’s position.
Kron delivered a blow to Sheehan and her defense team when he returned with a five-year sentence followed by two and a half years of supervised release. She remains out on bail pending the appeal.
Sheehan was acquitted on murder charges in the shooting death of her husband, retired NYPD Sgt. Raymond Sheehan in February of 2008.
In an interview with The Forum this week, Dowd explained the immediate fight before the defense is to keep her at her job for as long as possible. “For now we have a stay, pending review by a hearing officer from the Department of Education.” He did go on to say however, he suspects his client will be suspended as a result of regulatory policy regarding convicted felons.
Dowd says if there is any way that Sheehan would have a chance to keep her job, the defense will prepare whatever type of hearing testimony, including that of an expert psychologist, that the Board would require. If she is suspended however, she could be reinstated after a victory in the Court of Appeals.
When asked to explain his comment to the judge that he found the decision appalling, Dowd said his feelings were based on the fact that he felt Judge Kron was mixing apples and oranges in his sentencing. “It was more like he passed sentence for the shooting, not for being in possession of the gun,” Dowd said. “A shooting, by the way, for which a jury acquitted her.”
Dowd maintains that this sentencing was not only a terrible defeat for his client but for all victims of domestic violence. The attorney cited a 1983 domestic abuse case in Queens in which the judge allowed the fact that the victim was known to be a subpar housekeeper, and was someone who like to sleep late—basically he let the prosecution say that the woman’s husband had a reason to beat her. “As absurd as that sounds, we have not made any progress beyond that point given Judge Kron’s sentencing of Barbara Sheehan.
“I guess what I felt on Wednesday was desperation. I’ve been in this fight for a long time. What I see is that there has been no progress either in the Queens judiciary or the prosecutor’s office,” Dowd lamented. “I’m questioning whether I have wasted the last 28 years. I can see that what is depressing for me had better be no less than frightening to victims of domestic violence.” His message to them –“get out of Queens. You’ll get no help here.”
Now the waiting game and the preparation for the appeal process will begin. Thirty days after sentencing, December 10, Dowd and his team will have to file papers announcing their intention to appeal. Within 120 days of that filing they must file the paperwork setting forth the reasons they think Sheehan’s conviction and sentencing should be overturned.
By Patricia Adams
