Crooked politicians on notice

Crooked politicians beware -- at least in Montgomery County.

Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Ferman has announced the formation of a public corruption unit within her office.

The goal is to investigate allegations of malfeasance on the part of public officials.

The unit will probe complaints from the public regarding elected officials or people in positions of trust who may have violated the public trust for their own financial benefit or simply for power, Ferman told reporter Margaret Gibbons.

The unit will investigate theft-based crimes, abuse of authority and ethics violations, Ferman said.

While the D.A.'s office has always investigated public corruption, a specific unit has not been assigned to the task, Ferman said.

From Gibbons' story:

Citing the public outrage stemming from the results of public corruption investigations in Washington, Harrisburg and Philadelphia, Ferman said, "The public has lost confidence in many of their elected leaders and in government as a whole. We want to do what we can to help restore that confidence in government at the local and the county level."

"I feel it is important that our residents know that there is an office in Montgomery County where they can raise their concerns, where those concerns will be taken seriously and where nobody need fear official retribution," said Ferman.

Too often members of the public "feel something is just not right" but do not know how to address those issues, Ferman said. Now, she continued, they will have a place to voice concerns about public corruption.

"I want this office to be pro-active," Ferman emphasized.

Read Gibbons' full story in The Times Herald.