Attorney General mulling federal referral of hiring investigation

Attorney General Greg Stumbo is considering referring to federal prosecutors information uncovered during a special grand jury's investigation of hiring practices in Gov. Ernie Fletcher's administration.

Prosecutors in Stumbo's office are actively reviewing their files and "organizing the evidence with an eye toward a possible federal referral," Deputy Attorney General Pierce Whites said today.

A final decision about whether to refer the case to the U.S. Department of Justice will likely be made within 90 days, Whites said.

The Attorney General's office has looked at other "public corruption" cases and found several "similar to this one that have been prosecuted by federal authorities," he said.

Jodi Whitaker, Fletcher's press secretary, declined to comment on the possible referral.

The case's potential migration to a federal venue comes less than two weeks after a special Franklin County grand jury that had been investigating the hiring practices of Fletcher's administration for 18 months issued its final report and disbanded.

In its report, the grand jury alleged that Fletcher approved "a widespread and coordinated plan to violate merit hiring laws" that protect rank-and-file workers from job discrimination because of politics.

Fletcher said the grand jury report's allegations do not mesh with an August settlement between Fletcher and Stumbo that dismissed three criminal misdemeanor charges against the governor. In the settlement, Stumbo acknowledged that Fletcher's administration acted "without malice."

The report alleged that "entire cabinets and departments were tasked with carrying out various parts" of an "illegal plan" to replace rank-and-file workers with Fletcher supporters and attack a state law that forbids job discrimination because of politics.

Whites said any referral of the case would likely be made to Dept. of Justice officials in Washington and to U.S. Attorney L. Anna Forbes of Charleston W.V., who was appointed to answer previous questions regarding the investigtion after U.S. Attorney Amul Thapar of the Eastern District of Kentucky recused himself from the case because he was a social acquaintance of a witness.

Stumbo previously floated the idea of shifting the case to federal court on fraud, corruption or political discrimination charges after Fletcher pardoned everyone who might be indicted by the grand jury except himself.

An investigation of state hiring practices is also ongoing at the Kentucky Personnel Board, which is only now beginning to investigate a voluminous complaint filed in May 2005 that triggered the grand jury's inquiry.

- John Stamper

Comments

I bet Stumbo will not bring in the FBI. The FBI has been looking at Public Corruption in public pensions, and that is the last place Stumbo wants someone snooping around.

[steve]

So Stumbo makes a deal with Fletcher because he had a losing case and now wants the feds to prosecute. What a coward!!!!!!!