'Bridgegate' defendant to be freed amid high court appeal

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — A former Chris Christie appointee convicted in the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal is set to be freed from prison after a federal judge ordered his release Monday pending an appeal before the U.S. Supreme Court.

U.S. District Judge Susan Wigenton signed the order shortly after attorneys for Bill Baroni, who had started serving an 18-month sentence in April, filed it. A message has been left with his attorneys.

Bridget Kelly was also convicted in the 2013 scheme, commonly called Bridgegate, and was due to report for a 13-month sentence on July 10. Her attorneys asked the judge to postpone that in light of the high court's decision Friday to review the case in the fall.

The convictions stem from the 2013 closure of lanes to the bridge connecting New Jersey and New York as part of a political payback scheme.

Baroni was not initially part of the appeal, but has since been permitted to join Kelly's effort to overturn their 2016 convictions.

Kelly and Baroni have said they're grateful the Supreme Court is hearing their appeal and are hopeful the court will find no crime was committed.

Both Baroni and Kelly had their sentences reduced after an appeals court tossed out civil rights convictions last fall. They were also convicted on wire fraud charges for their role in shutting down the bridge's local lanes in Fort Lee, New Jersey, just as the school year was beginning — causing gridlock in the town.

Baroni was the deputy executive director at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which oversees the region's airports, bridges and tunnels including the George Washington Bridge. Kelly served as Christie's deputy chief of staff. She authored a now-infamous emailed that included the line "time for some traffic problems in Fort...