Local News in Brief : No Bail for Mob Suspect

A federal appeals court refused Monday to grant bail for Peter Milano, identified by authorities as the boss of the Los Angeles organized crime family, and two of Milano’s alleged lieutenants.

In a brief opinion, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court order denying bail for Milano, Luigi Gelfuso Jr., identified as a street boss of the organization, and Gelfuso’s son Michael, named as an associate of the crime family.

A federal district court judge in Los Angeles had ordered the three held without bail pending trial, set for March 1, on an 18-count racketeering indictment.

Attorneys for the men had claimed that their 10-month detention before trial amounts to unconstitutional punishment before conviction. Defense lawyers also asserted that the government delayed start-up of the trial by refusing to turn over wiretap tapes.

But the appeals court said there was no evidence of any undue delay on the government’s part and declined to rule on how long prisoners must be held prior to conviction before their incarceration can be considered punitive rather than regulatory.