Judge Targets November Trial in Chauncey Billups Case

BROOKLYN — The federal judge overseeing the rigged poker game case involving Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups is urging prosecutors to be prepared to have the trial start on Nov. 2.

Judge Ramon Reyes presided over a status conference in federal court in downtown Brooklyn on Wednesday in which both Billups and former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones were present.

Court was only in session for roughly 12 minutes, and neither Billups, Jones, nor their representation addressed the judge or reporters. Government prosecutors said discovery in the case is ongoing and expected to result in additional defendants being added.

What remains unresolved is whether the government will try the case with all 31 defendants in one trial or break it up into smaller groups. Reyes said there are “many ways to go about” trying the defendants and that he’s “not wed to anything in particular” in terms of a structure. The parties are aiming to make a determination on that front by the next status conference, which Reyes set for June 11th. 

On Tuesday, federal prosecutors said in a filing that they could reach plea deals with nearly two dozen of the 31 defendants who were arrested in October for their roles in the rigged poker ring. Lawyers from the Eastern District of New York told Reyes they expect to offer plea agreements to a dozen defendants in the coming days and added they’ve had “productive” talks with at least nine more and are optimistic the case can avoid going to trial. 

On their way out of the courthouse, neither Billups nor his attorney, Marc Mukasey, responded to a question regarding whether they were in plea talks.

In October, Billups and Jones were charged for their alleged roles in a vast ring of rigged poker games that stretched across the country and was backed by the Mafia. Billups and Jones are alleged to have been used to bring in potential players who lost money at the games and were compensated for doing so. Both former players have pleaded not guilty.

Jones is also part of a separate case that charged six other men in a different gambling ring in which they allegedly exchanged information about the availability of NBA players. Jones has pleaded not guilty in that case as well.