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Accused mobster wants to be own attorney

BY ANTHONY M. DESTEFANO | anthony.destefano@newsday.com

Joseph Corozzo is reputed to be the Gambino crime family's consigliere -- or adviser in Italian. These days Corozzo wants to keep his own counsel.

The 66-year-old Ozone Park man said yesterday that since he can't have son Joseph as his lawyer in a racketeering case, that he wants to be his own attorney.

"I would like to represent myself," Corozzo told federal Judge Jack Weinstein in Brooklyn during a lengthy pretrial conference in a 62-defendant Gambino crime family case.

Corozzo insisted that he wanted to be his own lawyer despite misgivings by Weinstein about "severe detriments" in doing so.

"I think I have very severe detriments right now," replied Corozzo.

Corozzo was apparently referring to the way Weinstein disqualified his son from representing him. Weinstein ruled that Joseph Corozzo, 41, had represented a man who might be a government witness at trial. Government prosecutors also say that attorney Corozzo had been "house counsel" to the Gambino family, which he has denied.

The elder Corozzo also told Weinstein that he objected to be being grouped with defendants charged with drug offenses and violence. He was referring to the way defendants were being grouped for trial.

Corozzo said he didn't have the money to hire a lawyer and Weinstein offered to have a federal defender appointed.

"I really don't want legal aid, I want to represent myself," said Corozzo.

Weinstein didn't set a trial date for Corozzo but did pencil in June 9 as the first trial date for reputed Gambino boss Jack D'Amico and others.