Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose

McHOSE: SPECIAL PROSECUTOR'S REPORT MAKES IT CLEAR THAT FARBER WAS WRONG

REPORT SAYS CONDUCT RAISES SIGNIFICANT ETHICAL QUESTIONS THAT MUST BE ADDRESSEDAugust 15, 2006
Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose/973-726-0954
Assembly Republican Office/609-292-5339

McHOSE: SPECIAL PROSECUTOR'S REPORT MAKES IT CLEAR THAT FARBER WAS WRONG

REPORT SAYS CONDUCT RAISES SIGNIFICANT ETHICAL QUESTIONS THAT MUST BE ADDRESSED

Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose today said that New Jersey Attorney General Zulima Farber should resign or be removed from office after a special prosecutor’s report today concluded that she had violated the state's code of ethics when she showed up at the scene of her boyfriend's traffic stop in May.

"Attorney General Farber can no longer serve in this post with the public's confidence now that it is clear she has violated the state code of ethics," said McHose, R-Sussex, Morris and Hunterdon. "As the state's top law enforcement officer she is to be held to the highest standard of conduct, and this behavior fell well short of that standard."

In July, Governor Jon Corzine appointed retired Appellate Judge Richard J. Williams to investigate whether any criminal or ethical misdoing occurred during a traffic stop of Farber's boyfriend during which Farber arrived on the scene with her State Police driver.

A Fairview police officer voided traffic summonses he had written for the boyfriend of Farber after she showed up at the scene, where the officer had pulled over a 1995 Oldsmobile van driven by Hamlet E. Goore. The officer wrote two tickets for Goore. One for driving with a suspended license and one for driving an uninsured vehicle.

At that time a New Jersey State Police vehicle arrived with Farber who stepped out of the car. Although Farber didn't speak directly to the Fairview officer, the trooper driving Farber did, and the tickets were subsequently voided.

While Williams concluded that Farber did not commit a crime, his report does state that she violated the state code of ethics and that "her conduct does raise significant ethical questions that must be addressed."

"Ms. Farber should step down immediately to restore public confidence in the Attorney General’s office," McHose said. "If she is unwilling to step down, and the Governor is unable to remove her from that post, the Legislature should explore its options for facilitating her removal."

#####