Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Continues Its "CESSPOOL" Tradition; Ethics Charges Are Brought Against Its Former Chief Deputy, Crystal Murray Ducker.
Nighbert settles ethics case; new one brought against his former deputy
By Tom Loftus
FRANKFORT, Ky. — One ethics case against a Transportation Cabinet official from the Fletcher administration was settled Friday while a new charge was filed against a different cabinet official.
The Executive Branch Ethics Commission approved a settlement with former Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert, in which he admitted violating the state government code of ethics
At issue was his failure to disclose his part ownership of a business in the 2007 personal financial statement he filed with the commission.
As part of the settlement, Nighbert agreed to pay a $500 fine and waived his rights to appeal the matter to circuit court.
Nighbert was secretary of the cabinet from the spring of 2005 through the end of Fletcher's term in December 2007.
The ethics case involved his failure to list within his 2007 financial statement his half ownership of a business called Double Buck LLC.
That company's name surfaced in 2008 when Nighbert was indicted on charges of bribery, conspiracy and obstruction of justice for allegedly leaking confidential cabinet cost estimates for road projects to contractor Leonard Lawson.
The indictment alleged Lawson later rewarded Nighbert with a consulting job with a company called Utility Management Group, which gave Nighbert a new car and a salary of $125,000 per year.
However, a federal judge ruled there was insufficient evidence to show Lawson arranged the job for Nighbert and dismissed the bribery charge. In January a federal court jury acquitted Nighbert and Lawson on all other counts in the high-profile case.
Prosecutors at trial alleged Nighbert's failure to disclose the Double Buck company on his financial statement was part of an effort to help conceal his compensation from UMG.
Nighbert's attorney Howard Mann denied any attempt by Nighbert to conceal his part ownership of Double Buck. Mann said earlier this week that Nighbert inadvertently failed to list Double Buck on the form and was negotiating a settlement with the commission.
Also Friday, the commission filed a new charge against the woman who served as deputy secretary in the Nighbert Transportation Cabinet, Crystal Murray Ducker.
The commission charged that Ducker violated the state ethics code “by accepting employment, compensation or other economic benefit from RJ Corman Railroad Group.”
The charge says that this violated part of state ethics code forbidding a state official from accepting — within six months of leaving office — a job with any company that he or she dealt with directly as a state official.
Each violation of the ethics code can result in a fine of up to $5,000.
By Tom Loftus
FRANKFORT, Ky. — One ethics case against a Transportation Cabinet official from the Fletcher administration was settled Friday while a new charge was filed against a different cabinet official.
The Executive Branch Ethics Commission approved a settlement with former Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert, in which he admitted violating the state government code of ethics
At issue was his failure to disclose his part ownership of a business in the 2007 personal financial statement he filed with the commission.
As part of the settlement, Nighbert agreed to pay a $500 fine and waived his rights to appeal the matter to circuit court.
Nighbert was secretary of the cabinet from the spring of 2005 through the end of Fletcher's term in December 2007.
The ethics case involved his failure to list within his 2007 financial statement his half ownership of a business called Double Buck LLC.
That company's name surfaced in 2008 when Nighbert was indicted on charges of bribery, conspiracy and obstruction of justice for allegedly leaking confidential cabinet cost estimates for road projects to contractor Leonard Lawson.
The indictment alleged Lawson later rewarded Nighbert with a consulting job with a company called Utility Management Group, which gave Nighbert a new car and a salary of $125,000 per year.
However, a federal judge ruled there was insufficient evidence to show Lawson arranged the job for Nighbert and dismissed the bribery charge. In January a federal court jury acquitted Nighbert and Lawson on all other counts in the high-profile case.
Prosecutors at trial alleged Nighbert's failure to disclose the Double Buck company on his financial statement was part of an effort to help conceal his compensation from UMG.
Nighbert's attorney Howard Mann denied any attempt by Nighbert to conceal his part ownership of Double Buck. Mann said earlier this week that Nighbert inadvertently failed to list Double Buck on the form and was negotiating a settlement with the commission.
Also Friday, the commission filed a new charge against the woman who served as deputy secretary in the Nighbert Transportation Cabinet, Crystal Murray Ducker.
The commission charged that Ducker violated the state ethics code “by accepting employment, compensation or other economic benefit from RJ Corman Railroad Group.”
The charge says that this violated part of state ethics code forbidding a state official from accepting — within six months of leaving office — a job with any company that he or she dealt with directly as a state official.
Each violation of the ethics code can result in a fine of up to $5,000.
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posted by KYJurisDoctor at 9:38 AM
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