Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett announced the filing of criminal charges against 12 current or former state officials involved in the "Bonusgate" scandal.
The indictments are the culmination of a year-long investigation in what has turned out to be Pennsylvania's biggest public corruption scandal of the past 30 years. The case involved the use of $4 million in taxpayer dollars to provide bonuses to state employees who allegedly conducted campaign work on state time.
The biggest names under indictment are former state Rep. Mike Veon (pictured here), who was the No. 2 ranking House Democrat until he lost re-election in 2006, and state Rep. Sean Ramaley, a Democrat from Beaver County.
The other big name on the list of indictments is Michael Manzo, former chief of staff for Democratic Majority Leader Bill DeWeese. You can't get much closer to DeWeese than his chief of staff.
In other words, DeWeese dodged a bullet, but watch out for the ricochet.
The key to Thursday's indictments was a statement by Corbett saying the charges were part of the first phase of the investigation. Corbett said he expects more arrests to follow.
Thursday was not a good day for the Manzo family. Rachel Manzo, executive director of the House Democratic Policy Committee and wife of Michael Manzo was also indicted.
Another Harrisburg power couple got hit hard by the indictments. Jennifer Brubaker, director of the Legislative Research Office for the House Democratic Caucus and her husband, Scott Brubaker, the former director of staffing and administration for the House Democratic Caucus, were also charged.
And now that the dozen people named in the indictments are facing prison terms, will they cooperate with authorities and give up bigger fish? You better believe it. Everyone is out to save their own skins.
Read more about the indictments at the Attorney General's Web site.
As Corbett reminds us at the end of the detailed press release, "A person charged with a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty."
That doesn't mean you can't hold public officials accountable on Election Day. The only way to end the culture of corruption in Harrisburg is to clean house. All of the alleged illegal activity occurred under the watch of Bill DeWeese.
1 comment:
I think the tax payers of Pa. should be given their money back.
Now we all know why our taxes are so high. We have to support all of the corrupt individuals in Harrisburg.
Bill Deweese needs to go down with the rest of them. He is as dirty as they come. Lock him up and throw away the key.
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