UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURTSOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK ------------------------------------------------------xUNITED STATES OF AMERICA::16-CR-193-JPO-1v.::
JOSEPH CHAIT,:Defendant.:------------------------------------------------------x
SENTENCING MEMORANDUM ON BEHALF OF JOSEPH CHAIT
Judith H. Germano, Esq.GERMANO LAW LLC460 Bloomfield Avenue, Suite 200Montclair, New Jersey 07042 jgermano@germanolaw.com(201)247-7970
Attorney for Joseph Chait
Introduction
Joseph (“Joey”) Chait worked in his family’s
California-based art and antiques gallery and auction house
(the “Gallery”)
run by his domineering fatherfor the past 15 years, since he was 23 years old.
This was the only job he has ever held, other than “work” within the Church
of Scientology in which he was raised.Joeyhas entered a guilty plea and fully accepts responsibility for facilitating Gallery shipments,out of the United States,of artwork items made from carved and finished rhinoceros horn and ivory, without the requisite permits. Joey did not receive any fin
ancial gain from these particular transactions beyond his base salary at his father’s
business. At great risk to himself and his family, Joey has fully and proactively cooperated with theU.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, providinginformation and engaging in proactive, recorded communications to help the governmentin this and other investigations. As the sentencing letters to the Court demonstrate, Joey is a kind and gentle soul who is always eager and willing to help others, and who has suffered years of significant and horrible abuse within a destructive cultthat inculcated obedience and suppressed independent thought through physical and mental punishment and threats of being completely cut off from those whom heloved most.From birth, Joey Chaitwas raised in the Church of Scientology
(the “Church”)
,which (as has been well-documented) is aninternally violent cult that preachesfear and strictobedience.Within the Church, Joey was subjected to mental and physical abuse, includingbeatings as well asfood and sleep deprivation. From a young age,he also lived with the terrifying understanding that if he dared to challengethe tenetsorauthority of the Church
, he would be “disconnected:”
completely ostracized by parents, family and friends.
Obedience was also demanded by Joey’s father,
an explosive and frighteningmanwho
dominated every aspect of Joey’s life from childhood t
hroughadulthood. Joey was denied the
2
opportunity to be educated outside of unaccredited Scientology schools; he was not allowed to control his own finances; his father (consistent with Church teachings) disapproved of his homosexuality and coerced him to use Scientology to try to become
“
straight
”
; Joey understood that if he left the Church, he would be denied all future contact with his mother, father and brothers; at work,
in his father’s art and antiques gallery,
Joey was not permitted to make even minor decisions
without asking his father’s permission
. Not surprisingly, Joey did as he was told, at the Church and at the I.M. Chait Gallery, where under
his father’s direction, h
e violated the wildlife regulations even though he knew it was wrong. During the course of the instant criminal investigation involving transactions at the I.M. Chait Gallery
, Joey’s father became incapacitated due to a heart attack that caused
severe brain
damage. While distressed by his father’s failing health, f
or the first time in his life (at the age of 36), Joey was free of
his father’s tyrannical grip
. Since then, he has repeatedly sought to make things right. Joey has admitted his guilt, taken full accountability for his actions, and has cooperated with the government to try to make amends for his conduct. To address the trauma of the past three decades, Joey is currently undergoing therapy with a professional who specializes in treating victims of destructive cults. Given these circumstances, incarceration would not promote any of the goals of sentencing and would fail to recognize that Joey
’s con
duct was largely attributable to the cruel abuses, beliefs and ambitions of his father and the Church. A non-custodial sentence would be sufficient and just punishment that properly takes into account the nature and characteristics of
Joey’s particular offense and his personal history and characteristics. Joey:
clearly is not at risk of re-offending and poses no threat to the community; has fully accepted responsibility and showed remorse for his conduct; engaged in significant and even proactive efforts to assist the