PHAR-MOR FRAUD Monus seeks freedom now

If Monus wins the appeal, his sentence would be reduced and he would be released from prison.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A lawyer for Mickey Monus says the former Phar-Mor chief should be let out of prison while he appeals for a further reduced sentence.
The request is pending before Judge Peter C. Economus of U.S. District Court, Youngstown. It was filed recently by Atty. David L. Engler.
Monus, 55, is serving more than 11 years in prison for fraud and embezzlement that eventually led to the demise of the discount store chain.
He was convicted in May 1995 and sentenced in December 1995 to nearly 20 years. That sentence was later reduced on appeal.
His attorneys filed a request for a new trial in March 2001, saying there was new evidence in the case, but Judge Economus denied it in September 2002.
The new trial issue is no longer being pursued, so the only matter before the U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, is the sentence reduction.
Engler is asking that Monus be freed until the appellate court rules on that issue.
"The judge [Economus] clearly has the ability and the authority to do that," said Engler, who has represented Monus for about a year.
Engler said his request is based on a recent clarification in federal law regarding crimes that affect financial institutions.
He said if the clarification had been in place when Monus was sentenced, he would have been sentenced to only 85 months and would have been released by now.
Possibilities
If the federal appellate court rules in Monus' favor, his sentence would be reduced and Monus would be released because he would already have served enough time to satisfy the sentence.
But Engler said by the time that happens, Monus might have already served nearly his entire original sentence, which is why he's asking for the early release while the matter is decided.
"It could be that Mickey Monus will already be out of prison by the time the Sixth Circuit actually rules on this," Engler said.
Monus is at the Federal Correctional Institution in Elkton, in Columbiana County. Engler said he is scheduled for release in June 2005, but the Federal Bureau of Prisons Web site says his release date is December 2005.
Engler said Monus' sentence should be reduced anyway because he was sentenced to more time than others who were sentenced nationally for similar crimes.
Engler said that if Judge Economus denies his motion for early release, he will seek the same relief from the Sixth Circuit court.
bjackson@vindy.com