But Judge Says Marko Markovich Showed ‘Contempt’ For The Legal Process

A judge in Manhattan has sentenced 28-year-old Marko Markovich to 300 hours of community service for BASE jumping from One World Trade Center, which was still under construction at the time of the stunt.

But Justice Juan Merchan of the Criminal Branch of the New  York County Supreme Court was clear in what he thought about Markovich, and it wasn’t complimentary. “Of the three defendants, none have shown more contempt for the process than your client,” he said before handing down the sentence.

The New York Post reports that Markovich apologized to the court before the sentence was read. “I’m truly sorry for the way I acted and the way I’ve been. If I had a chance to do it over again, I never would, I’m sorry,” he said.

Justice Merchan, however said the apology was “convenient”, and slapped Markovich with 300 hours of community service. That’s the most of any of the three who took part in the BASE jump in September 2013.

The penalty was not the most that could have been imposed on Markovich. Prosecutor Joseph Giovannetti had asked the judge to sentence Markovich to 16 days in jail and three years probation.

Judge Merchan took exception to the way Markovich had behaved during the proceedings. The BASE jumper sold t-shirts as a way to raise money for his defense, and reportedly made less-than-complimentary comments about police investigating the case on social media before his arrest.

(Image from YouTube video)

FMI: www.nycourts.gov/courts/1jd/criminal/courtrooms.shtml