This was briefly discussed on another thread here....did Paulie really give up Tommy DeSimone over the Billy Batts murder because he tried to rape Karen Hill?

I read somewhere that Paulie knew that this would have caused a lot of internal problems with his crew. And since Paulie was dating Karen for a while, he might have felt protective over her. It seems that Paulie appeased the Gambinos, while keeping Jimmy and Henry out of harm's way.

I believe this version because it helps explain why Tommy got clipped over Batts, but Jimmy and Henry were given a pass....even though they participated. In the Jimmy Burke biography (Mobsters), I believe that he took over Batts' loansharking business while he was in the can. And after Batts got released from prison, he wanted it back, while Jimmy wanted to keep it.