New York – The unusually severe sentence of 27 years in prison for Sholom Rubashkin is a victory for a prosecution that from the outset pursued a win-at-all-costs strategy. But the success comes at a price, and not just to the 51-year-old man now facing a virtual life sentence, his wife and 10 children. The government’s handling of this case has sullied our justice system.
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One recalls the prosecution’s opening salvo on the Agriprocessors kosher meatpacking plant in Postville in May 2008 — the shock-and-awe raid, replete with a Black Hawk helicopter, guns and wholesale arrests. The resources used were far disproportionate to what should have been necessary for an adequate pursuit of its investigation. The unprecedented incarceration of immigrant workers for the types of violations that were alleged and the violations of due process, in which immigrant workers were shuttled through the court system barely understanding the proceedings, set the tone for a grossly overzealous prosecution.
The prosecution’s Javertian tenacity was unwavering and remained punitive throughout the judicial process. A sale of the business, which the Rubashkin family sought after the indictment, would have alleviated much of the bank’s losses. But the government took steps that effectively deterred any viable buyer from taking real interest.
As part of the sale process run by the federally appointed trustee, the U.S. attorney took the extraordinary measure of requiring interested buyers or investors to sign an affidavit disclosing any continued involvement with the Rubashkin family. Simply put, the government sought to bar a buyer or investor from even consulting with a member of the Rubashkin family about the business, including those who have never been accused of any crimes or wrongdoing. At the sentencing hearing, the defense referred to this measure as the “No Rubashkin edict.”
Read the full OpEd by Rabbi Menachem Genack chief executive officer of OU Kosher here
Where were they for the last year year? The OU remained silent leading to the courtcase. Now they wake up?
What are Genack’s legal qualifications to judge the prosecutorial decisions. I understand he may disagree from an outcomes perspective.
Shame on you Genack!
You did a very shameful act by taking off your Hechsher!
How many companies do you remove your Hechsher from due to bad management?? (He wasn’t even indicted of the bank fraud charges at the time).
You were part of this excessive prosecution!
Why is Genack talking? He is head of KASHRUS and nothing more!! Keep out of politics and stick to keeping us from eating treif please. Stop trying to be in the spotlight always. Especailly after the fact. Focus on what you know and not what you want people to think you know.
But MSR got more then what the prosecution was asking. The question here is on the judge.
Why are a bunch of mashgichim getting involved in a matter that has no nexus with the quality of hashgacha (or lack thereof) at Agrigprocessor’s. SMR was not charged with selling treifus under an OU plumba.
What a chutzpah, where was the ou up in till now, they had a major part in bringing down rubashkin, now they wake up
where were they years ago when some info was leaking about the improprieties in Agriprocessors, and telling SMR this is not how a frum yid should act and do business?
Tell him they would tell people not to eat his meat until he stops all his bad practices.
That would have been really great help and avoided the whole issue altogether.
The OU’s interest is in secular Jews who buy tons of their clients’ products as well as the American distribution system that supports this (such as Wal-Mart, the biggest grocery chains and their distributors, etc.).
To the OU, any affiliation with chareidim is a liability. That’s why they supported Agriprocessors’ Lefitst detractors such as the food-workers’ union, the media, PETA, liberal candidates for public office, etc.
How many millions did the OU make in merchandising their hechsher? The entire episode stinks.
why come out with your statements after the fact, you guys should of been at the fore front of any campaign 15 months ago, perhaps your looking to certify the prison SMR is going to be sent to, after all it’s more dollars in your company’s pocket, you knew how to take the money from agri, you have had other mashgiach’s in the Chicagoland area that would not accept their product even when bearing an OU, and they worked for you guys something is wrong with your company.
How absurd that the hangman, an accomplice in bringing AGRI down now wants to look the part of the saviour after the frum world has come out in support of SMR. With such friends…
SMR was very lucky he had the OU and KAJ watching over kashrus. The Monsey butcher couldn’t get bank loans even by lying, and ended up selling treifus.
It is a shame, that all of sudden all these Jewish leaders, recognize that the penal system is harsh and chews up all none violent offenders who try to fight their charges and decide to take a chance on a trial. The fact is that SMR was not treated differently than any other white-collar defendant who is despised by the prosecution and the judge to boot. Why was SMR despised, not because he is a Jew, because SMR defenders decided to go to war with the prosecution and the Judge, that is how the system is set up, if you plead guilty and express remorse, the prosecution and the Judge will usually show mercy, inasmuch in this case team Rubashkin’s decided to fight at every opportunity, his team made it a US v Jews persecution, instead of working on trying to put doubt in the jury’s mind, they made it a holy war.
Bottom line the saying goes, you reap what you sow. All theses after the fact mourning will not change the outcome even of the appeal, it will be judge on its merits, and I don’t see any reason why the appeals court would send back the case for resentencing. Judge Reade covered all the bases, with the sentencing memorandum.
The statement of Rabbi Genack is certainly welcome. However, the reality is that Rabbi Genack and the OU were not supportive (and even harmful by thier intentional avoidance ) throughout most of the the tragic trama that befell the Rubashkin family and the Agriprocessors Company. I attempted to contact rabbi Genack early on in this affair. I received a prepared, standard letter that was less than satisfactory and showed a lack of courage and integrity and much political caution. In response I withdrew my membership and support of the OU.
Allen of Herksher Zedek now called Magen Zedek and the liberal Orthodox group Uri Tzedek are building on the suffering of Rubashkin. Uri Lezedek has launched its own ethical heksher called the Tav Hayashar for restaurants. Its time for us to boycott these two who attacked Sholom Mordechai. Yankolovich of Uri Lezdek wrote in the Jewish Week that Sholom Mordechia deserved to be in jail for Pesach. He heads this groups so called Herksher. We need to boycott them. This is a list of the restaurants. contact them and tell them as long as they have the so called Heksher you are going somewhere else.
MANHATTAN:
16 Handles – 153 2nd Avenue, New York, NY 212-260-4414
Bagel Boss (Manhattan Location)- 263 1st Avenue, New York, NY 212-388-9292
Cafe Nana – 606 W 115th St – 347.244.0033Cafe 11 – 11 Broadway – 212.425.2233Dovid’s Kosher Food Stand – 27 William St (Beaver St & Exchange Pl) – 212.248.9008Hartley Kosher Deli – W 114 St (Broadway & Amsterdam Ave) – 212.854.5111Hewitt Kosher Dining – W 116 St & Broadway – 212.854.6663Noah’s Ark Original Deli – 399 Grand St – 212.674.2200Sacred Chow – 227 Sullivan St (W 3 & Bleecker St) – 212.337.0863Soom Soom – 166 W 72 St – 212.712.2525Stogo – 159 2nd Avenue, New York, NY 10003 212-677-2301
Supersol West Side – 661 Amsterdam Ave – 212.222.6332Tease – 379 3rd Avenue, New York, NY – 212-889-8727
(V) Vegetarian Sandwich Bar – 1259 Park Ave (E 97 & 98 St) – 212.360.7185Your Heights Cafe – 4413 Broadway – 212.544.9044
BRONX:Geshmake Fish Market – 513 W 236 St – 718.432.5157Mr Bagel Cafe & Catering – 5672 Broadway, Bronx, NY 718-549-0408
Nathan’s Kosher Meats – 570 W 235 St – 718.548.1723Riverdale Kosher Market – 5683 Riverdale Ave – 718.884.2222Silverleaf Caterers – 5672 Broadway, Bronx, NY 201-304-5559
QUEENS:A and A Gourmet – 188-09 Union Turnpike – 718.468.0903Isaac’s Prime Beef – 189-19 Union Turnpike – 718.217.9299Subway – 14124 Jewel Ave – 718.544.7827
R’ Genack writes: “The Orthodox Union after the indictments required that he step down from management as a condition of our providing kosher certification of his
products” BY SAYING THIS THE “OU KOSHER” GAVE SUPPORT TO PETA ACCUSATIONS! THE NYT REPORTED THAT SOME ORTHODOX RABBI’S (OU) AGREE WITH PETA! HOW DISCUSTING & IRESPONSIBLE THIS IS FROM A FRUM ORGANIZATION! ATTORNEY NAT LEWIN CALLED OUT THE OU FOR TAKING THIS ABSURD POSITION 2 YEARS AGO.
the OU is playing Political Correctness. they are sounding like “Hechsher Tzedek” they should appoligize for their stand.
Someone is getting something done! We’re writing another fiery editorial – that will show them! We’ll have another fundraiser, hire another lawyer, write some more op-ed’s – that will really show the US Justice Dept. we won’t stand for this!
That’s what we Jews are good for – emotional fundraisers, great polemics, and being made into soap.
did Menachem Genack (my jewish hands will not write Rabbi on a person that has Jewish blood on his hands he has a 30% part in Mossar Yiisroel Leyad Akum) take off the hasgacha of Stop and Shop products when they were involved in the Ahold (parent company) billion dollar scandal?does SMR long beard enrage Genack? Are the clean shaven goyim of Ahold free to steal? did all this hechsher Tzedek trash boycott all the Ahold, Us food service, and their 4 chains of 100’s of supermarkets? this Genack has no backbone to stand up for anything,how can he be trusted for kashrus? Who asked Genack to write his article with the insert of that Rubashkin was truly guilty? he should rather shut up and eat his dina demalchusa grilled hamburger for July the fourth.
R Genack was always more concerned with what the liberal Forward Jews and the Hillaries of the world will think, than the essence of the Rubashkin case and its core fallacies. Now, after being a party to Rubashkin’s downdfall, genack writes a fancy op-ed for JTA. who cares?
Overzealous prosecution? Where was the overzealous defense? Team Rubashkin put on a great media show. They did a marvelous grassroots job of garnering support. But the defense itself? Pitiful, weak, and inept. Playing the race card, pointing fingers everywhere, and making outrageous claims is not a defense – it’s an execution. Prosecutors are by nature overzealous. Too bad Guy Cook and Nat the Bat forgot how to defend while they were busy being mouthpieces for a man condemned as much by his own arrogance as anything else.
#31 thAnks for the list I will not step foot in this places until that hechsher is removed and hope that the thousands reading this will do the same
Disgusting that this lyncher CEO-of-OU now jumps on the other side of the rubashkin fence.
At least have the decency to start by saying “I owe the Rubashkins and SMR an apology.” But to join the chorus of mourners after stomping on the person who is being mourned!? Nauseating.
Anyone ready to boycott the OU?
I doubt it. We the keyboard clickers and internet surfers and blog posters are ready to vent online, but don’t you take away my OU-kosherized chips. Come on. Who is ready to tell food manufacturers and restaurants that they will stop buying food, and actually do stop, until they remove the OU from their payroll? Very few I guess. Since it didn’t happen when this Crank-Genack spouted anti-rubashkin rhetoric two years ago.
Easy to boycott the marginalized Hechsher Tzidoki’s – a little tougher to cut out my food supply.
Well then, we get what we allow to seed and grow.
There is far more to this than meets the eye. The OU is a strong political force in this country. While using the main “political” arm to make these statements may hinder existing and ongoing efforts, the less politically powerful arm has the ability to speak out on this issue. Rabbi Genack is a tsaddik. I have met him on a number of occasions and he is of sterling character and reputation, working alongside Rav Belsky and Rav Shechter.
Pulling certification of any product is not a simple matter and there are many, many chashuva rabbanim involved in this process. What goes on behind closed doors among our rabbanim is not for us to debate or decry.
Even many of the heimeshe hashgochas rely on OU standards and supervision, simply putting their own stickers on top of the OU label, and the OU has a long history and rationale for allowing this.
If we cannot support the major organizations facilitating kosher food on our table, who can we support?
Even murderers don’t get 27 years without the chance for parole. The judge blocked the appeals as well!
Agree with #’s 30 & 31. OU seems to have the need(?) to ‘compromise’, which says it all. Their job is ONLY to make sure that their hechsherim are 100% and not to fall in line with today’s political correctness.
Oh! now I understand (hopefully) correct me if I don’t.
Being that Chabad” looks the other way” with driving on Shabbos, I should use the same consideration for kashrus. You’re right! except Chabad is not looking the other way we are looking straight at the person and we are accepting him or her for who she is as a human being and a Jew. It is not for us to judge anyone especially when it comes to yiddishkiet. We show them warmth and love and above all respect. Comparing my concern with the Hechsher tzedek is not exactly accurate. First of all let me apologize for all the times I mentioned “reform ‘ and “conservative. the Rebbe time and again explained that using terms like that divided am yisroel. we are all Yidden and classifying anyone forces them under one “umbrella” and hinders advancement. And now I see the effects of doing that. Forgive me for mentioning it I see first hand the negative results. Anyway my concern for hechsher tzedek is that it can confuse people into thinking that it is another hechsher on the market hence the name HECHSHER tzedek.The fact that it was publicly campaigned on back of agris downfall is unfortunate. I am not against ethics and morality only
I was only aware that there is such a thing as hechsher tzedeck when the Rubashkin case started so obviously to me see it seemed like they were promoting something on someone elses tzar which naturally turned me off. Anyway to sum it up, if a person doesn’t use the hechsher tzedeck like a hechsher its not a problem. For those that dont know better it is. If it was called something other than hechsher i think I would be able to handle it. Let us hope that all yidden could unite under one “hechsher” our holy Torah and bring Moshiach now! I appreciated our dialogue and have a happy and healthy summer and Good Shabbos!