NEW CITY — An Orange County man is accusing the Rockland sheriff and district attorney of conspiring with the state parole agency to illegally jail him without due process, after he served his federal prison sentence.
Philip Aurecchione, 36, of Newburgh filed a federal civil rights lawsuit claiming his constitutional rights were violated when sheriff's officers detained him, took him to the county jail, and later transferred him to state prison. Aurecchione's lawsuit claims he was denied the right to an attorney, to challenge his arrest and detention in court, and to defend himself.
He was detained on June 1, 2021, 11 months after Rockland prosecutors were denied an arrest warrant by Rockland County Judge Kevin Russo to return Aurecchione to prison. Prosecutors claimed his initial release, on Feb. 25, 2020, was premature due to what they called a calculation error by federal officials, according to the lawsuit filed earlier this month in the U.S. District Court in White Plains.
He spent more than three months incarcerated before a court-ordered release on Sept. 9, 2021, the suit said. He's seeking $5 million in punitive damages, a declaration he served his sentence and legal fees.
"Our client was treated unfairly and inhumanely," attorney Robert Barchiesi said Tuesday of the suit filed June 1. "During a time when prisons were releasing inmates due to COVID concerns, and reducing the jail populations, our client was placed back in custody, confined during additional...
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