Woody Allen Speaks Out

[Jefferson23]

258. There was no witch hunt, and you are misrepresenting the prosecutor:

Although the Yale-New Haven Hospital Child Sexual Abuse Clinic decided Dylan hadn't been molested, Connecticut State Police reached a different conclusion, and on Sept. 24, 1993, Maco called a news conference to announce that although there was probable cause to arrest Allen, he would not press charges because of the fragility of the "child victim."

Maco was accused of trying to prejudice a custody battle between Allen and Mia Farrow then taking place in New York, where a judge eventually awarded custody of Dylan to her mother.

While making clear they were not commenting on the specifics of the Allen-Farrow case, two veteran prosecutors, Danbury State's Attorney Stephen J. Sedensky III, and his predecessor, the now-retired Walter Flanagan, said it was not unusual for a prosecutor to consider the impact that pursuing a criminal complaint could have on a victim.

"What I have found in my own personal experience is it depends on the individual child as well as the facts of the case," Sedensky said.

"There are many factors that go into it," Flanagan said. "There is no such thing as usual or unusual case. Every case is unique. It's what you think is right."

While Dylan Farrow's public statement is "a big story and is inviting discussion and controversy," Read said, the commotion hasn't spread to Bridgewater.

There, Read said, Mia Farrow is a just another longtime resident who has been involved in a variety of activities, and whose privacy is respected.

Maco spent five years fighting misconduct allegations brought by Allen, including a disciplinary hearing before the Criminal Justice Commission, which appoints state prosecutors, and the Statewide Grievance Committee, which investigates complaints of misconduct by attorneys.

"All the complaints were dismissed in 1997, and I retired in 2003 with an unblemished career," he said.

Still, Maco said he hopes Dylan Farrow has been able to read his statement about his decision not to prosecute Allen.

"I hope she has access to that statement, to know what I did and why I did it," Maco said. "I hope she finds some peace and solace at this time."

http://www.newstimes.com/policereports/article/Prosecutor-in-Woody-Allen-case-back-in-the-5201622.php