Lewiston Party House defendant seeks dismissal
The man who previously pleaded guilty to charges of providing booze and pot to teenagers in a Mountain View Drive home that became known as the 'Lewiston Party House' is asking to have his case dismissed.
Gary Sullo, 58, has appealed to Niagara County Court Judge John Ottaviano, asking to have the charges he has already admitted to — and been sentenced for — thrown out because he claims his constitutional rights to a speedy trial were denied.
Lawyers for Sullo and Niagara County District Attorney Brian Seaman argued the appeal before Ottaviano on Wednesday.
Defense attorney Jessica Kulpit told the judge that after Sullo was first charged in 2018 it took '4 years, 9 months and 8 days' to resolve his case.
'There is no universe I can think of where it takes 5 years to resolve a misdemeanor case,' Kulpit said.
While admitting that proceedings in the case were impacted by restrictions imposed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kulpit insisted that 'the Town of Lewiston Court did nothing, without explanation, the court did nothing (to advance the case). This is a deprivation of constitutional rights.'
Sullo was sentenced by Lewiston Town Justice Hugh Gee to three years probation for his guilty plea to misdemeanor charges for providing alcohol and marijuana to teenagers in the home he shared with his late wife Tricia Vacanti, who was also originally charged in the case. His sentencing came more than six years after the first reports of booze and drug-fueled teenage parties at the home.
Sullo was charged with multiple counts of endangering the welfare of a child and unlawful dealing with a child but ultimately pleaded guilty to just two counts of endangering the welfare of a child in a deal with Niagara County prosecutors.
At the time of that deal, Sullo had filed a motion in Lewiston court to have the case dismissed, arguing that his speedy trial rights had been violated. Before prosecutors could respond to that motion, and before Gee could issue a ruling on it, Sullo reportedly emailed the judge and said he wanted to take the DA's plea offer.
Kulpit said that despite her client's decision to take the prosecutor's offer, the request to have the case dismissed should have been ruled on in the Lewiston court. She said Sullo always expected to get a ruling.
'He took the plea believing he could still appeal,' Kulpit said.
Assistant Niagara County District Attorney Laura Jordon told Ottaviano that Sullo has no right to appeal.
'The case law is clear,' Jordan told the judge. 'A guilty plea precludes a (speedy trial) appeal.'
Jordan also said all of the delays in the case, before Sullo's guilty plea, were a result of either Covid restrictions or requests from his defense attorney.
'Not a single delay was attributable to the people,' Jordan said. 'The record (in the case) shows all those delays, outside of Covid, were at the defendant's request.'
Sullo's sentencing followed the sentencing of the other remaining adult in the case, Jessica Long. Long, 43, was sentenced by Gee in January 2024 to six months of interim probation for her guilty plea to one count of first-degree unlawfully dealing with a child.
Vacanti had faced 41 counts of unlawfully dealing with a minor and endangering the welfare of a child in connection with the house parties. But she died suddenly on July 3, 2022, and the charges against her were set aside.
Specifically, Vacanti had been accused of providing booze and pot to at least three teenage girls, who later claimed they were sexually assaulted in her home by her then-teenage son, Christopher Belter.
Belter was indicted, and pleaded guilty in June 2019, to felony charges of third-degree rape and attempted first-degree sexual abuse and two misdemeanor charges of second-degree sexual abuse for encounters with four teenage girls that occurred during the parties at the family's home in 2016 and 2018.
In November 2021, Belter was sentenced to eight years of sex offender probation. A month later, he was classified as a Level 3 sex offender.
Level 3 is the most serious classification and legally indicates a 'sexual predator.' Belter was also declared a sexually violent offender.
Sullo and Vacanti were originally charged with 19 combined counts of unlawfully dealing with a minor and endangering the welfare of a child in connection with the parties at their home from 2016 to 2018. In January 2020, Niagara County prosecutors leveled an additional 22 counts of endangering and unlawful dealing against Vacanti and another eight counts of the same allegations against Sullo.
Long was charged with single counts of unlawfully dealing with a minor and endangering the welfare of a child.
Sullo, who now resides in Florida, was not present in court for the hearing on his appeal.
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