The defendant in a Harlem buy-and-bust trial kept former First Daughter Caroline Kennedy and 14 other jurors waiting for four hours yesterday — while he got a haircut.
Nelson Chatman, 31, was a no-show at 10 a.m., when the second day of his Manhattan Supreme Court trial for allegedly selling $20 worth of crack to an undercover cop was set to begin.
Supreme Court Justice Richard Carruthers could not hide his dismay when the freshly groomed defendant finally walked into court shortly after 2 p.m.
“I was informed today that the defendant did not present to be taken to court — he said he wanted to get a haircut?” Carruthers asked, demanding, “Is that so? Is that what happened?”
When Chatman’s attorney, Mark Jankowitz, confirmed, “That’s what happened,” the judge was livid.
“I am just floored by the fact that the Department of Corrections lets people do this. I am just astounded, really astounded,” he said.
The judge told Chatman that he has signed an order forcing the DOC to bring Chatman to court on time every day.
“If the defendant fails to appear for any such court session, and if for some reason the Department of Corrections fails to abide [by that order] . . . the trial will go forward in the absence of the defendant,” Carruthers said.
When Kennedy, 55, and her fellow jurors were finally ushered into the jury box, the judge apologized for the delay, telling the panel, “It’s just one of those uncontrollable things.”
A DOC spokesman could not immediately comment on the coiff-furor.
Kennedy, the daughter of JFK, has been turning heads in the courthouse since she was selected for the jury on Monday.
Yesterday’s testimony, by two undercover detectives who participated in the buy-and-bust operation at Lexington Avenue and East 129th Street, transpired in a sealed courtroom to protect their identities.
Testimony in the case continues today.