Back in the can

Okay, what genius gave felon Shelly Silver a home furlough while awaiting the decision on granting him home confinement, which now blessingly seems to have been denied? Was it the warden at the Otisville federal lockup, where Silver has now rightly been returned? Was the green light for Silver’s little overnight vacation to Grand St. given by federal Bureau of Prisons Northeast Regional Director Nicole English, or even Director Michael Carvajal down in D.C.?

Someone in authority authorized that this scoundrel be set free temporarily, as he tried to worm his way out his six-and-a-half-year term after only a few months using the ruse of the COVID pandemic, which is a lot less pandemic-ish in Orange County these days. In any event, at this point, vaccines were supposed to be well on their way to all federal prisoners.

The closed-lip BOP had better start talking. If not, the Department of Justice or Congress must force out the answers about Silver’s escapade. Although maybe Silver’s arrival on the Lower East Side and his pathetic play for sympathy sitting in a wheelchair was for the best, as the immediate uproar caused a quick rethinking among his jailers and a speedy trip back to prison.

Last summer, facing his sentence, Silver begged in a handwritten note: “Your Honor, I do not want to die in prison.” To ensure that he makes it all the way to his March 10, 2026 release date, he should eat three squares and exercise in the prison yard.

Remember what Silver’s guilty of: four separate felony counts of obtaining big bucks in real estate kickbacks in exchange for providing official help to a few friendly insiders and money laundering. Maybe he can use his expertise in the prison laundry.

And it wasn’t a literal crime, but Silver’s underhanded repeal of the commuter tax will grow from the current $15.6 billion in lost revenue to New York City to near $20 billion when he gets out. A lot of damage for one small man.