Gerard Terry’s sentencing on state tax fraud charges postponed

A sentencing hearing for former North Hempstead Town Democratic Chairman Gerard Terry, who pleaded guilty in September to a state tax fraud charge, was postponed Wednesday until after he is sentenced in a separate federal tax evasion case.

Nassau County Criminal Court Supervising Judge Christopher Quinn moved Terry’s sentencing to Feb. 26.

Terry, 63, was facing state and federal tax fraud charge and pleaded guilty in both cases.

He pleaded guilty Sept. 25 to a state criminal tax fraud charge and admitted failing to file a 2010 state personal income tax return and to not paying more than $3,000 in taxes. On Oct. 12, Terry pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court’s Eastern Division in Central Islip to tax evasion and admitted to not paying nearly all of his federal income taxes over 18 years.

Federal prosecutors said Terry was expected to receive a sentence of between 30 and 36 months in prison. Quinn has said he would give Terry a “split” sentence of up to 6 months of jail time and 5 years probation on the state charges.

Terry had been an influential Democratic operative in Nassau County for decades. A Newsday report in January 2016 showed he had compiled a nearly $1.4 million tax debt despite having been paid a total of more than $217,000 in six attorney contracts in 2015. Terry has since resigned or been terminated from those positions.

The federal sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 16, attorneys said.

Terry, who appeared in Quinn’s court Wednesday, and his attorney, Stephen Scaring of Garden City, declined to comment.

By Scott Eidler

scott.eidler@newsday.com@ScottEidler

Scott Eidler is a deputy editor for the towns department at Newsday. Scott has worked at Newsday since 2012 and previously covered municipal government and education.