Brian Benjamin joins a LONG list of disgraced NY officials

Why does this keep happening? [FORWARD TO A FRIEND]( [VIEW IN BROWSER]( [DONATE]( [WNYC Politics Brief] [Ad: Until the wild is truly free, never rest. click here to learn more from earth justice]( Advertisement Brian Benjamin joins a long line of NY political rogues ousted over corruption [By David Cruz and Brigid Bergin]( [a close-up of Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin] Seth Wenig/AP/Shutterstock New York's now ex-lieutenant governor Brian Benjamin held the state’s second highest office for just over seven months before resigning last Tuesday, following a five-count indictment for corruption. According to prosecutors, Benjamin abused his position as an elected official as part of a bribery scheme wherein he allegedly funneled a state grant to a real estate developer’s nonprofit in exchange for donations to his campaign account. Though Benjamin has pleaded not guilty on all counts, his resignation puts him in a club of more than a dozen state officials who, over the last decade, have left their office or been removed in connection to claims of misconduct. This continued pattern of corruption has led good government leaders to repeatedly criticize the state for not tightening up its ethics and campaign finance oversight. Despite an early pledge from Gov. Kathy Hochul to make ethics reform a top priority, the version that made it into the final budget agreement replaces the oft-maligned Joint Commission on Public Ethics, or JCOPE, with another: the [Independent Commission on Ethics and Lobbying]( which will be comprised of appointees vetted by law school deans but picked by state lawmakers. Here's a brief list of officials who've left office since 2012 over official misconduct charges: Assemblymember Pamela Harris A Brooklyn Democrat, Harris resigned in April of 2018, [three months after she was charged for a series of schemes]( including allegedly filing false claims to obtain a total of $25,000 in FEMA funds earmarked for victims of Superstorm Sandy. She was also charged with misappropriating New York City Council funds intended for a Coney Island nonprofit. She was sentenced to six months in prison. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman Schneiderman, once the state's top prosecutor, resigned in 2018 on the same day resigned the same day a [New Yorker]( article outlined incidents of physical and mental abuse on several women he dated. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver One of the state's most powerful and long-serving Assembly speakers, Silver resigned in 2015 [after he was accused of accepting some $800,000]( in secret referral fees from real estate developers seeking tax breaks from the state. In another elaborate scheme, prosecutors said Silver made $3.9 million in referral fees for legal work he never performed by convincing a Columbia University medical doctor to direct patients exposed to asbestos to the law firm Weitz & Luxenberg. After a years-long legal court battle, Silver was found guilty and sentenced to seven years in federal prison. He was compassionately released and died on January 24, 2022. Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos Skelos, a powerful Republican state senator, was hit with bribery, extortion and corruption charges in 2015 after prosecutors said he used his position to get his son Adam several no-show jobs totaling $300,000 from companies seeking to do business before the state. Skelos resigned shortly after he was convicted, won on appeal, and was then retried and eventually found guilty again in 2018. Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith Smith, a Democrat representing southeastern Queens, was [convicted on federal bribery charges]( in 2015 for attempting to buy his way onto the Republican ticket for mayor in 2013. He did so by trying to obtain funds from two developers, one of whom was actually an undercover FBI agent. Unlike most elected officials who resigned after being criminally charged with a crime, Smith stayed until he was defeated in the 2014 primary by Leroy Comrie. Assemblymember Gabriela Rosa Rosa, who represented Manhattan’s 72nd Assembly District, resigned in 2014 after federal prosecutors found she made false statements on her immigration form. Rosa immigrated to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic, later paying a man $8,000 to enter into a false marriage, according to prosecutors. Assemblymember William Boyland Jr. Part of a political dynasty stretching back decades, Boyland was convicted in 2014 for repeatedly asking for bribes from two undercover FBI agents posing as businesses in exchange for access to other elected officials. He served six years in prison before being released on compassionate grounds in 2021. [For details on the]( [longer list of recently-disgraced officials, continue reading here.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 🗳️ --------------------------------------------------------------- [Ad: as a national legal non-profit. no one fights more cases for the environment. click here to learn more about earth justice]( Advertisement --------------------------------------------------------------- For Further Reading [voters in voting booths] LAST-MINUTE FIX [Lawmaker racing to change law in order to get Brian Benjamin's name off the June ballot]( Assemblymember Amy Paulin is pushing a bill that would allow anyone charged with a crime to voluntarily give up their spot in an election. If passed before May 1st, former Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin would be able to get his name off the June primary ballot. [a gavel] THE MASTER [Judge appoints independent expert to draw a back-up congressional district map]( If New York Democrats don't win their legal battle defending their newly-drawn congressional district map, the state will have to use a map created by Carnegie Mellon political scientist Jonathan Cervas, the court-appointed "special master." [Rep. Tom Suozzi at a campaign event] CLEARING UP 'MISUNDERSTANDINGS' [Suozzi says his comments on Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill were 'inartful']( Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi, who's running for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, apologized for telling a conservative radio host that Florida's law was "reasonable," saying he opposes the bill that bans teaching about sex and gender identity to K-3 students. --------------------------------------------------------------- 🗳️ --------------------------------------------------------------- [Ad: Until the wild is truly free, never rest. click here to learn more from earth justice]( Advertisement [the logo for the podcast Dead End] [Coming Soon: "Dead End: A New Jersey Political Murder Mystery"]( A couple dies, sending their son on a quest for truth. Dead End is a story of crime and politics in the Garden State. [LISTEN TO A PREVIEW]( Support WNYC + Gothamist Make a donation to support local, independent journalism. Your contributions are our largest source of funding and pays for essential election coverage and more. 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