Judge: Jesse Friedman files closed while DA appeals

Nassau County prosecutors will not have to open their files to Jesse Friedman as they appeal a judge's ruling that he is entitled to see the material as he tries to withdraw his 1988 guilty plea to molesting children, an appeals court has ruled.

The Appellate Division in Brooklyn did grant Friedman's request for an expedited appeal and directed Nassau District Attorney Kathleen Rice to file legal briefs by Oct. 31. The appeals court ruling was issued Tuesday and became public Wednesday.

Justice F. Dana Winslow of State Supreme Court in Mineola ruled in August that under the Freedom of Information Law, Friedman was entitled to see the entire file because of the public's need to have confidence in how prosecutors and other public officials carry out their duties.

Friedman and his father pleaded guilty to sexually abusing more than a dozen young boys in their Great Neck home. Arnold Friedman killed himself in prison in 1995. Jesse Friedman served 13 years and was paroled in 2001.