Nov. 15, 2001 — Little more than a month after being acquitted of a variety of crimes in U.S. District Court, including civil rights violations, former V.I. drug czar Wayne Chinnery again is a target of federal prosecutors — this time for allegedly lying under oath.
On Thursday, a federal grand jury indicted Chinnery on four counts of perjury. The allegations stem from his testimony at his October trial. According to U.S. Attorney David Atkinson, Chinnery "knowingly made false material declarations" while under oath, including:
– That he obtained a bachelor of arts degree from Hofstra University.
– That he attended Hofstra University Law School and received a juris doctorate degree there.
– That he is an attorney.
– That he worked as an associate in certain V.I. law firms.
"Chinnery made these false statements with the intent to bolster his credibility and enhance his testimony as to matters that were material to the jury's consideration of the issue in the case," Atkinson said. The indictment alleges that Chinnery "well knew these statements were false."
In October, a District Court jury on St. Thomas acquitted Chinnery of three charges brought against him in connection with a May 2000 incident that sent a 19-year-old woman to the hospital. Chinnery had been charged with a civil rights violation, use of a firearm in the commission of a crime and third-degree assault with a deadly weapon.
At the time of the incident, Chinnery, a former candidate for senator and governor, was serving both as head of the Narcotics Strike Force and as drug-policy adviser to Gov. Charles W. Turnbull. The governor relieved him of both positions in August of 2000, shortly after Chinnery was charged with assaulting the mother of one of his children.
A Territorial Court judge acquitted Chinnery of the aggravated assault charge in that case after the woman testified that Chinnery had not hit her and said her statement to police about the incident had been blown out of proportion.
If convicted of the perjury charges, Chinnery could face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.