DATELINE: BUFFALO

December 6, 1999

A federal judge is considering whether to name an overseer for Laborers Local 210, which is said to have ties to organized crime.

At stake is control of the 1,200-member union, which supplies workers to union contractors in construction, demolition and asbestos work throughout western New York.

The United States Justice Department and Local 210's parent union want Judge Richard J. Arcara of Federal District Court to approve an agreement naming a court liaison officer to oversee the union for the next five years. The agreement would end a federal civil racketeering lawsuit filed last week against Local 210 accusing 16 people of controlling every aspect of the local, which draws $1 million a year in dues.

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