What responsibility does a supervisor have for the unethical conduct of a
subordinate? This issue arises in a matter in Winn Parish, Louisiana
where, according to an article on
myarklamiss.com, based on a channel 10 newscast (accessible on the
same page as the article), a former chief deputy sheriff is being
investigated by the state ethics board for apparently having used deputies to
collect rent for properties he...
In my previous blog post, the issue arose of voiding a planning and
zoning commission's approval of a permit because one of the commission
members had a conflict of interest. Connecticut law automatically
invalidates the
commission action, without any individual or body having to act. But this is unusual. In fact, most jurisdictions do not expressly provide for the avoidance of permits,...
It's been almost two years since the New
York Times broke the story on the abuses of New York City council
earmarks slush fund, which totaled about $50 million a year. This week, the
council member featured in the Times article was expelled from the
state senate for a violent act committed against his female companion,
according to...
Political activity by local government employees can be a sign of misuse of office. And when election problems arise, they generally involve local
government employees, as has happened in Essex County (NJ; home of
Newark), according to an
article in Friday's Star-Ledger.
The principal problem with political activity involves patronage, the...
This week saw the opening of the trial of former New York state senate
majority leader Joseph Bruno for honest services fraud. According to
the assistant U.S. attorney presenting the
case, as quoted
in the Albany Times-Union, although a
criminal trial, "this case is about conflicts of
interest. It's about failure to
disclose conflicts of interest, and it's about concealment of
information that...
It's been over three years since I wrote about the
conflict situation of San Diego's pension board. Its members were
selected by the city government labor unions and by the city, and they
worked for the city. When an increase in their retirement benefits was
explicitly tied to their approval of a reduction in contributions to
the pension plan, the pension board members acted in their personal
interest and against the interest of...