N.Y. Gov. Paterson Slapped for 'Free' Yankees Tickets
David Paterson faces new ethics charge of violating state gift ban.
March 3, 2010— -- New York Gov. David Paterson, already under fire for his alleged involvement in a domestic violence case, faced charges today that he solicited free tickets to a Yankees World Series game for his son and a friend.
The New York State Public Integrity Commission formally filed the notice and asked State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to investigate whether the governor's actions violated state ethics laws. Violation of the laws could cost the governor up to $90,000 in fines and possibly his job.
"The commission determined that there is reasonable cause to believe that Gov. Paterson solicited, received and accepted an unlawful gift; and falsely testified under oath that he had always intended to pay for the tickets," the commission said in a statement today.
There was no immediate comment from the governor's office.
Paterson, who said last week he would not run for election in November, convened a meeting of his cabinet in Albany today to discuss the state's $8 billion budget deficit.
Meanwhile, questions about his involvement in another potential ethics violation continued to swirl across the state.
The New York Times has reported that Paterson allegedly injected himself into a domestic violence complaint against close aide David Johnson to try to get it to "go away." Paterson has denied any wrongdoing.
"I would really like to tell my story," Paterson told WABC's Dave Evans this morning in Albany. "But when I read these accounts that are unsourced and inaccurate, it's obviously frustrating. But... when the truth comes out, I'm confident I'll be vindicated."
Last Halloween, Johnson's girlfriend, Sherr-una Booker, told police she was beaten and choked by Johnson and later obtained a temporary protection order against him. But Booker chose not to press charges, stirring speculation that she may have been pressured into her decision.
The Times reports that the governor's state police security detail visited with Booker, even though it did not have jurisdiction in the case.
"I have trouble with even calling the police because the state troopers kept calling and harassing me to drop the charges," Booker told a judge in court transcripts obtained by ABC News.
So far, two members of the Paterson administration have stepped down.
Late last month Paterson's public safety deputy secretary, Denise O'Donnell, resigned in protest after concluding that the governor's office and the state police had improperly contacted the woman who had filed the domestic abuse report against Johnson.
New York State Police Superintendent Harry Corbitt abruptly announced his resignation effective today.
State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat who has been eyeing the governorship, is now investigating the report at Paterson's request.
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