The Commission on Public Integrity fined Governor David Paterson for $62,125 due to asking for and accepting 5 tickets for the first Yankees game in the 2009 World Series. It was stated that Paterson gave a false testimony. CPI referred to his statement that he was going to pay for these tickets, which he received for free.
With just 11 days left in the governor’s term this is a very strong blow. The CPI said that the check Paterson wanted to use to pay was a postdated one.
On the other hand, David Johnson said that tickets like these should be received by the governor without paying for them. The problem is that David Paterson claims that it is his duty to attend a series opener, but there was no official role played in that particular game.
The price of one ticket was $425.
This is not the first time that Paterson had problems with the CPI. In May 2009 he publicly asked commission members to resign because of a scathing report that was issued by the Inspector General. The report showed that Herbert Teitelbaum, CPI executive director, leaked information to Eliot Spitzer, the former governor. Teitelbaum resigned after the incident.
The initial plan was to fine Paterson for over $96,000 but the amount was lowered to the one mentioned above. The governor can use the campaign account to pay for this fine, although this would only cause another scandal.
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