Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Political Business on County's Time Clock

Yesterday we told you of the report by Channel 10's Ray Levato on his Twitter blog from the James Smith trial:

One person in the courtroom every day to observe works for Democratic minority in the county legislature.
That would be a county employee.

That County employee, who's been at the Smith trial during working hours every day of the trial has now been identified, by someone at the courthouse.   It's Joe Rittler, a member of the Democratic Minority Staff in the County Legislature.

Our friends at Monroe Rising have confirmed it also.

On County time!   On the taxpayer's dime!   Not at a strip club, but at a spectacle even more morally degenerate:   a political show trial.

From another source, we have confirmation that County employee Rittler also attended every court appearance of former GOP Executive Director Andrew Moore.   Again, during working hours, on the County's clock.

Prosecutor William Gargan and his boss, not-to-be-Federal-Judge Mike Green have shown us what to do in these cases:
Maggie Brooks:   Call the cops immediately.   If you wait until tomorrow, you could be indicted as a lawbreaker, for shielding a wrongdoer from justice.

Messrs. Gargan and Green:   Indict!   Here's another clear case of petit larceny.   Rittler's doing exactly what the Robutrad workers did, only at a courtroom instead of a strip club, and you indicted them.
When will the DA bring the indictment?   We'll be waiting.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Smith not guilty on all counts

Anonymous said...

Is that Ridler's mug shot?

Anonymous said...

Was Rittler's reporting back to Chairman Morelle done on county time also? Or was he "out sick" all that time?

Anonymous said...

The Rittler's criminal modus operandi is so deeply ingrained into his personality that he is virtually powerless to stop himself from acting it out

Anonymous said...

In various news video clips of this trial, I saw Noah Libowitz, Bill Taylor, and Kevin Finnerty present for no apparent reason. They were not testifying, and why does the County Communications Director need to be there? When you get your indictments, make sure these three are included as well for wasting taxpayer money.

Philbrick said...

10:48 - You're not even close. The people you mention were there with the County Executive when she testified, arriving and leaving with her.

Liebowitz is Communications Director, the principal interface with the press. As the person most likely to receive questions from the media about the Exec's testimony, his best preparation, for which there'd be no satisfactory substitute, would have been to see it first hand. Well within the job description.
As it would have been, had he been there for any of the testimony.

Basically the same for Fennerty. As Deputy County Exec. (or maybe different title, but similar function), he represents and stands in for Brooks in multiple venues, where he could be asked about the testimony. Again, no substitute for actually hearing it. Does the Vice President get criticized for accompanying the President to events, instead of presiding over the Senate? Of course not, nor should he be.

Taylor is either County Attorney or high up in the County Attorney's office. If one person had a reason to be there every day, to hear if anything was coming out in testimony that the County Attorney's office should know about, it would be Taylor or an equivalent member of the County Attorney's office. The only question regarding him is, why wasn't he there every day?

Joe Rittler is a staffer in the Democratic office of the County Legislature. He was deployed here as a political operative. He had one function: be alert for anything that can be used in Democratic mailings and advertising in election campaigns.

According to Channel 10's Ray Levato, Rittler was at the Smith trial all day, every day. A very different proposition than somebody accompanying Brooks for her testimony, arriving with her and then leaving with her.

And Rittler attended every court hearing in the now-dismissed Andrew Moore matter, where it was all just legal motions, not testimony because the judge threw out the whole thing so it never got to trial. Hard to see why even a political operative would be at that. Unless it was as Morelle's monitor, to make sure Gargan was toeing the line, in exchange for whatever office or preferment the Party had promised him.

Of course the Dems needed a political operative at the Smith trial. After 18 years in the minority, Democrats in the County Leg still haven't found a policy argument to offer the public to put themselves back into the majority. Despite losing last November's "Robutrad election," the one they felt sure to win -- and the whole reason for the indictments of Moore and Smith, since the acquittals wouldn't come until after the election -- Dems still see contriving "scandals," with the aid of their media collaborators, as the only path back to power.

A discussion among Democrats on this very point over at Rochester Turning.

Anonymous said...

I also saw William Gargan every day of the trial and for every court appearance, serving no apparent purpose whatsoever. I hear he is still hanging out near the courthouse. Why is that? He again serves no purpose and has no business being that. The courts are for attorneys and judges, neither of which suit Mr. Gargan. Can someone explain that to me!

Anonymous said...

Wow, between this and all the smoke breaks, does this kid do any work in the legislature office? Why doesn't he just come off the payroll and go to work over at democrat part headquarters if this is the only purpose he serves? And why doesn't our local non-media ask questions and report on stuff like this?

I sure hope Ray Levato didn't get in trouble for making this comment on his twitter feed.

He does work for Channel 10 you know, and they don't allow anything to be reported that might make democrats look bad.