{"id":6781,"date":"2014-08-01T21:51:34","date_gmt":"2014-08-01T21:51:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/?p=6781"},"modified":"2014-08-01T21:54:24","modified_gmt":"2014-08-01T21:54:24","slug":"u-s-attorney-warns-cuomo-on-moreland-commission-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/?p=6781","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Attorney Warns Cuomo on Moreland Commission Case"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><strong>U.S. Attorney Warns Cuomo on Moreland Commission Case<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>By SUSANNE CRAIG, THOMAS KAPLAN and WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM<br \/>\nThe New York Times<\/p>\n<p id=\"story-continues-1\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"324\" data-total-count=\"324\">In an escalation of the confrontation between the United States attorney in Manhattan,\u00a0<a title=\"More articles about Preet Bharara.\" href=\"http:\/\/topics.nytimes.com\/top\/reference\/timestopics\/people\/b\/preet_bharara\/index.html?inline=nyt-per\">Preet Bharara<\/a>, and Gov.\u00a0<a title=\"More articles about Andrew M. Cuomo.\" href=\"http:\/\/topics.nytimes.com\/top\/reference\/timestopics\/people\/c\/andrew_m_cuomo\/index.html?inline=nyt-per\">Andrew M. Cuomo<\/a>\u00a0over the governor\u2019s cancellation of his own anticorruption commission, Mr. Bharara has threatened to investigate the Cuomo administration for possible obstruction of justice or witness tampering.<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"342\" data-total-count=\"666\">The warning, in a sharply worded letter from Mr. Bharara\u2019s office, came after several members of the panel issued public statements defending the governor\u2019s handling of the panel, known as the Moreland Commission, which Mr. Cuomo created last year with promises of cleaning up corruption in state politics but shut down abruptly in March.<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"136\" data-total-count=\"802\">Mr. Bharara\u2019s office has been investigating the shutdown of the commission, and pursuing its unfinished corruption cases, since April.<!--more--><\/p>\n<aside role=\"complementary\" data-marginalia-type=\"sprinkled\"><span style=\"font-size: 16px;\">In the letter, sent late Wednesday afternoon to a lawyer for the panel, prosecutors alluded to a number of statements made by its members on Monday, which generally defended Mr. Cuomo\u2019s handling of the commission. The statements were released on the same day Mr. Cuomo first publicly responded to a report in The New York Times that described how he and his aides had compromised the commission\u2019s work.<\/span><\/aside>\n<figure itemid=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO1\/CUOMO1-master180.jpg\" itemprop=\"associatedMedia\" itemscope=\"\" itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" role=\"group\" data-media-action=\"modal\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" itemid=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO1\/CUOMO1-master180.jpg\" itemprop=\"url\" alt=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO1\/CUOMO1-master180.jpg\" data-mediaviewer-src=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO1\/CUOMO1-superJumbo.jpg\" data-mediaviewer-caption=\"Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo\" data-mediaviewer-credit=\"Dominic Nahr for The New York Times\" \/><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption itemprop=\"caption description\">Gov. Andrew M. CuomoCreditDominic Nahr for The New York Times<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"205\" data-total-count=\"1413\">At least some of those statements were prompted by calls from the governor or his emissaries, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation who were unwilling to be named for fear of reprisal.<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"161\" data-total-count=\"1574\">One commissioner who received a call from an intermediary on behalf of the governor\u2019s office said he found the call upsetting and declined to make a statement.<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"328\" data-total-count=\"1902\">The letter from prosecutors, which was read to The New York Times, says, \u201cWe have reason to believe a number of commissioners recently have been contacted about the commission\u2019s work, and some commissioners have been asked to issue public statements characterizing events and facts regarding the commission\u2019s operation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"396\" data-total-count=\"2298\">\u201cTo the extent anyone attempts to influence or tamper with a witness\u2019s recollection of events relevant to our investigation, including the recollection of a commissioner or one of the commission\u2019s employees, we request that you advise our office immediately, as we must consider whether such actions constitute obstruction of justice or tampering with witnesses that violate federal law.\u201d<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"217\" data-total-count=\"2515\">Reached late Wednesday night, a spokesman for the governor did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter from Mr. Bharara\u2019s office. A lawyer for the commission declined to comment on the letter.<\/p>\n<aside data-marginalia-type=\"sprinkled\" data-skip-to-para-id=\"story-continues-3\">\n<div>\n<article data-permid=\"12432902\">What an embarrassment to the executive branch of our state that the US Attorney has to browbeat our governor into avoiding a coverup.<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p id=\"story-continues-3\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"253\" data-total-count=\"2768\">The Times reported last week that\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2014\/07\/23\/nyregion\/governor-andrew-cuomo-and-the-short-life-of-the-moreland-commission.html\">Mr. Cuomo\u2019s office had deeply compromised the panel\u2019s work<\/a>, objecting when it focused on groups with political ties to Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat who is seeking re-election, or on issues that might reflect poorly on him.<\/p>\n<figure itemid=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO2\/CUOMO2-master180.jpg\" itemprop=\"associatedMedia\" itemscope=\"\" itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" role=\"group\" data-media-action=\"modal\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" itemid=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO2\/CUOMO2-master180.jpg\" itemprop=\"url\" alt=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO2\/CUOMO2-master180.jpg\" data-mediaviewer-src=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/CUOMO2\/CUOMO2-superJumbo.jpg\" data-mediaviewer-caption=\"Preet Bharara, the United States attorney in Manhattan.\" data-mediaviewer-credit=\"Anthony Lanzilote for The New York Times\" \/><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption itemprop=\"caption description\">Preet Bharara, the United States attorney in Manhattan.CreditAnthony Lanzilote for The New York Times<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"270\" data-total-count=\"3038\">The Times\u2019s article prompted condemnations from government watchdog groups and newspaper editorial boards. Mr. Cuomo, facing perhaps the harshest scrutiny of his three and a half years as governor, remained out of public view for five days as criticism mounted.<\/p>\n<p id=\"story-continues-4\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"238\" data-total-count=\"3276\">Late Sunday night, Mr. Cuomo\u2019s office announced that he would make an appearance in Buffalo on Monday morning, setting in motion what appeared to be a coordinated effort by Mr. Cuomo and his aides to present a defense for their conduct.<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"221\" data-total-count=\"3497\">Just hours before Mr. Cuomo faced reporters, one of the co-chairs of the commission, William J. Fitzpatrick, released a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2014\/07\/29\/nyregion\/29cuomo-fitzpatrick-response.html\">three-page statement<\/a>\u00a0in which he asserted that \u201cnobody \u2018interfered\u2019 with me or my co-chairs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"303\" data-total-count=\"3800\">Facing questions from the news media, Mr. Cuomo\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2014\/07\/29\/nyregion\/cuomo-defends-his-handling-of-ethics-panel.html\">repeatedly cited<\/a>\u00a0the statement by Mr. Fitzpatrick, the Onondaga County district attorney. The governor called the statement \u201cvery helpful,\u201d explaining that Mr. Fitzpatrick \u201cknows better than anyone else what happened with the Moreland Commission.\u201d<\/p>\n<p id=\"story-continues-5\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"78\" data-total-count=\"3878\">\u201cNow we have facts that we can actually deal with, right?\u201d Mr. Cuomo said.<\/p>\n<aside data-marginalia-type=\"sprinkled\" data-skip-to-para-id=\"story-continues-6\">\n<article data-permid=\"12445494\">Mr. Fitzpatrick\u2019s statement seemed at odds with frustration he had expressed to colleagues last year; in one email reported by The Times, he wrote that Mr. Cuomo\u2019s office \u201cneeds to understand this is an INDEPENDENT commission and needs to be treated as such.\u201d Mr. Cuomo dismissed that email as \u201csnippets of conversations.\u201d<\/article>\n<\/aside>\n<figure id=\"timeline-of-the-moreland-commission\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2014\/07\/31\/nyregion\/us-attorney-warns-cuomo-on-ethics-case-.html?emc=edit_na_20140731&amp;nlid=68672635&amp;_r=0#story-continues-7\"><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2014\/07\/06\/nyregion\/timeline-of-the-moreland-commission-1405973407573\/timeline-of-the-moreland-commission-1405973407573-master180.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Timeline: The Short Life of an Anticorruption Commission<\/h2>\n<\/figure>\n<p id=\"story-continues-7\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"298\" data-total-count=\"4510\">Mr. Fitzpatrick\u2019s statement on Monday also appeared to contradict previous statements he made to federal prosecutors, according to three people briefed on the matter but not authorized to speak on the record. \u00a0Mr. Fitzpatrick did not immediately return a call late Wednesday seeking comment.<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"307\" data-total-count=\"4817\">Also Monday, Thomas P. Zugibe, the Rockland County district attorney and a commission member, released a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.documentcloud.org\/documents\/1237965-statement-by-rockland-county-district-attorney.html\">statement<\/a>in which he asserted that the panel \u201cdid incredible work\u201d and said, \u201cAt all times it was clear that all investigatory decisions were within the exclusive discretion of the Commission.\u201d<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"319\" data-total-count=\"5136\">Another commission member, Frank A. Sedita III, the Erie County district attorney, issued a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www2.erie.gov\/da\/index.php?q=district-attorney-releases-statement-regarding-moreland-commission\">statement<\/a>\u00a0that acknowledged there had been \u201crumors\u201d that Mr. Cuomo\u2019s office had sought to block the issuance of some subpoenas. But he said that Mr. Cuomo\u2019s office ultimately \u201cagreed not to interfere with our work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"266\" data-total-count=\"5402\">And in an\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/polhudson.lohudblogs.com\/2014\/07\/28\/moreland-commission-member-i-never-threatened-to-resign\/\">interview<\/a>\u00a0with Gannett, Gerald F. Mollen, the Broome County district attorney, said he believed that he and his colleagues had \u201cabsolute independence to go wherever the commission wanted and the governor could not stop us if we choose to go somewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n<p id=\"story-continues-8\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"251\" data-total-count=\"5653\">The letter noted \u201cthe commissioners and the commission\u2019s employees are important witnesses in this ongoing investigation, and information from those with personal knowledge of facts of the investigation is highly material to that investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"206\" data-total-count=\"5859\">The letter warned that tampering with the recollections of commission members or employees could be a crime, and directed them to preserve any records of \u201cactual or attempted contact\u201d along those lines.<\/p>\n<p itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-para-count=\"107\" data-total-count=\"5966\">James Margolin, a spokesman for the United States attorney\u2019s office, declined to comment Wednesday night.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>U.S. Attorney Warns Cuomo on Moreland Commission Case By SUSANNE CRAIG, THOMAS KAPLAN and WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM The New York Times In an escalation of the confrontation between the United States attorney in Manhattan,\u00a0Preet Bharara, and Gov.\u00a0Andrew M. Cuomo\u00a0over the &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/?p=6781\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6781"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6781\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}