That's the latest ruling last week by White Plains Federal Judge Barrington Parker in this crazy-mixed-up-case.

Parker ordered federal prosecutors to release Gotti's six bank accounts and nine parcels of real estate that had been frozen since Gotti and 39 others were arrested two months ago.

The feds had labeled them "substitute assets" for $20 million they claim are fruits of Gotti's and his codefendants' racketeering activity. If convicted, the accused mobsters and friends can be made to forfeit up to $20 million.

Prosecutors argued that if Junior's assets were not frozen he could hide his cash and sell the properties, which include two luxurious houses on Long Island and a country home in Pennsylvania, and there would be no way to force him to pay up.

Parker said he understood their logic, but couldn't find any provisions in the law that allowed it. He gave them 10 days to release the assets, or appeal his ruling.

Prosecutors will probably take the full 10 days before  deciding to give it up.

Gotti's lawyers Gerald Shargel and Bruce Cutler (left) were happy about the judge's ruling but are still trying to figure a way to spring their client, who's been in jail for two months.

Junior, who is not charged with murder or conspiracy to commit murder, is being held without bail after prosecutors successfully argued that he was a menace to society.

After spending two months locked up at the Westchester County jail with Junior, DePalma moved out and took up residence in tony Scarsdale with his girlfriend, Meryl Solomon, who teaches at a Montessori school.

Parker ruled that DePalma, charged with the same racketeering counts as Gotti, plus murder conspiracy, would not be a danger to society if confined at Solomon's home under house arrest. All the phones in the house will be tapped, he will be subject to surprise visits, and have to wear some kind of  electronic monitoring device.

Ms. Solomon has known DePalma for ten years, has been seeing him "socially" for the last two years, and is "presently seriously involved" with him,  according to his lawyers. She agreed to waive her privacy rights and co-sign a $1million bond on his behalf.

The 31-year-old lovebirds also have the feds to thank for whatever bliss they enjoy in the next several months. Prosecutors objected to DePalma living in his parents' home because that's where his mobster father Greg allegedly conducted his mob business, according to tapes secretly recorded during the lengthy investigation that ended in January.

So while Craig DePalma spends his days with the woman he loves, Greg DePalma (seen standing between Paul Castellano and Frank Sinatra in a famous 1975 backstage photo ) will be keeping Junior company in jail.

Some wiseguys get all the breaks.

ASK ANDY

This week, Andy -- pictured at the right with Mob Star, one of his all-time favorite Mafia books -- answers a query from Gang Land reader Charles Thomas about a vicious mob assault against the late newspaper columnist Victor Riesel.  Andy recounts four other cases in which newspapermen fared much worse than Riesel, who was blinded in a 1956 acid attack.

Victor Riesel was a well respected syndicated columnist specializing in labor matters. During a late night radio program on April 5, 1956, he attacked the leadership of Local 138 of the Operating Engineers of Long Island. He had previously criticized Teamsters Union president Jimmy Hoffa, among others. After the broadcast, Riesel went out to eat. When he left the restaurant at 3 a.m., he was attacked. A man threw acid into his face, permanently blinding him.

The feds investigated and arrested Abraham Telvi and two other minor
criminals. They also grabbed infamous Lucchese gangster, John (Johnny Dio) DioGuardi, a long time labor racketeer. Some reports have DioGuardi -- whom legendary prosecutor Thomas Dewey called "a young gorilla who began his career at the age of 15" -- hurling the acid himself. DioGuardi beat the rap when a number of witnesses changed their minds about testifying. Not long afterwards, Telvi was gunned down, probably because he was threatening to spill the beans if he didn't get more money, or simply to ensure he never would talk.

DioGuardi was convicted of stock fraud and sentenced to 15 years in 1973. He died in 1979. Riesel died in 1995, at age 81. 

Mobsters and journalists have a long violent history.

On Jan. 11, 1943, Carlo Tresca, the editor of an Italian language newspaper, IL Martello, was shot and killed as he walked along a New York street. Witnesses took down the license plate of the getaway car and it was linked to Carmine Galante, who at the time was a minor hood. He would later become Boss of the Bonanno Family in the 1970's. There was not enough evidence to charge Galante, and he was released after questioning. The prevailing wisdom is that Tresca was killed on orders from Italian Fascist leader, Benito Mussolini. It's suspected that Mussolini was incensed at the newspaper attacks against him by Tresca and complained about it to La Cosa Nostra power Vito Genovese, who was then in exile in Italy. Genovese, the story goes, put out a contract on Tresca. The message got to New York, despite the ongoing World War II. The hit was passed down to the up and coming Galante, who fired the shots that killed the newspaper editor. No one was ever charged in the case.

Perhaps the most famous case of a mob hit on a reporter was the 1930 killing of Alfred "Jake" Lingle of Chicago. He was a low paid Chicago Tribune reporter who lived the life of a millionaire. Despite earning less than  $100 per week, Lingle owned two homes, vacationed in Florida and bet heavily on the horses. These facts were not known to the public when Lingle was gunned down on his way to the racetrack. It was a shocking hit and Lingle was an instant hero as his paper and others poured out  eulogizes for the fallen journalist. Soon, however, the hero stories became tattered. Lingle was a personal friend of the infamous Al Capone (right) and actually acted as a key fixer between the gangster and the police. In   addition, Lingle had used his power position to shake  down saloon keepers and others. It turned out that Lingle had a joint stock market account with a Chicago Police Commissioner of over $100,000, a huge amount in 1930. Eventually, a minor hood named Leo Brothers was convicted of the killing. Sentenced to 14 years, Brothers served eight. The leniency of the original sentence raised questions about who was behind the assassination as did the fact the penniless gangster was able to hire a high priced legal team to defend himself. Educated guesses have Capone, who was furious  with his former friend Lingle for a series of double crosses, as  the mastermind. It's all speculation. Brothers never talked.

A few months before the Lingle hit, Julius Rosenheim, a newsman for a rival Chicago paper was killed, allegedly by hoods that he had betrayed. His murder did not draw the attention of the Lingle slaying, perhaps a Capone like character wasn't involved. In the same year, Jerry Buckley, a Detroit radio personality was gunned down. The shooting also drew a lot of attention. He too was revealed to have been deeply involved with gangsters. His killing was never solved. One theory had him using his radio show for blackmail.  Another had him extorting some gamblers. And yet  another suggested he had failed to live up to a promise to use his influence to help some gangsters with their legal problems.