Neil Cohen

Attorney General Anne Milgram today charged former Assemblyman Neil Cohen’s campaign treasurer with stealing money from his election fund to use for personal expenses.

Milgram indicted Rosemary McClave, 66, a Hillside Democratic activist who works as the Borough of Teterboro’s (population 18 as of the 2000 census) chief financial officer, for allegedly writing $5,562.54 in checks to herself  (payable to American Express) that were purportedly meant to reimburse campaign expenses.  But Milgram charged that McClave never put any campaign expenses on the credit card, instead using it to buy clothing from QVC and toys.  

Cohen, for his part, was indicted by Milgram in December on child pornography charges.  He resigned last summer after his the legislators he shares an office with, state Sen. Ray Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) and Assemblyman Joseph Cryan (D-Union) reported him to the Attorney General’s after a staffer found pornographic images of what appeared to be an underage girl printed out from his legislative office computer.  

Neil Cohen's lawyer, Mark H. Tuohey, is a partner at a high-powered Washington law firm.

The attorney who represented Neil Cohen at his arraignment today on child pornography and official misconduct charges is a Washington power lawyer who is a partner at Vinson & Elkins, a 700-lawyer international firm.  Mark H. Tuohey is a former federal prosecutor who served as Special Counsel to the U.S. Attorney General, as Deputy Independent Counsel for the Whitewater investigation, and as Chairman of the commission that returned major league baseball to Washington, D.C. and built a new stadium for the team. According to the firm website, Tuohey "concentrates his practice in complex civil and criminal litigation, internal corporate investigations and compliance programs. His practice is largely devoted to representing corporations, their officers and directors, and individuals in civil and white-collar criminal litigation, internal corporate investigations, and Congressional investigations."

Former Assemblyman Neil Cohen pleaded not guilty to child pornography and official misconduct charges today but admitted that he viewed child pornography on his state computer, according to a Star-Ledger report.  Cohen's lawyer says a state indictment "overcharged" him.

Neil Cohen resigned from the State Assembly last July after his running mates alerted authorities that he had child pornography on his state computer.

Former Assemblyman Neil Cohen is scheduled to be appear in court this morning to be arraigned on child pornography charges, according to a report in The Star-Ledger.  

Cohen was indicted on four counts in December – months after legislative officemates state Sen.  Ray Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) and Assemblyman Joe Cryan (D-Union) alerted the Office of Legislative Services to a printout of a nude girl found by a staffer on an office computer.
    
Cohen is set to appear before Superior Court Judge Gerald Council in Trenton.  

Neil Cohen gave $7500 to Roselle Democrats after his resignation.

Former Assemblyman Neil Cohen, who resigned his seat last July after child pornography was found on his state computer, still has $4,719 remaining in his campaign account.  A $2,000 contribution to the Union County Democratic Committee last April was voided, and $3,681 in checks that were written by the Cohen campaign but never presented for payment was credited back.  The Roselle Democratic Party accepted a $7,500 contribution from Cohen's campaign account on September 15. 

Cohen was indicted in December on official misconduct and child pornography charges.

Union County GOP Chairman Phil Morin issued a statement after learning of Cohen's contribution to his hometown Democrats:

Democratic State Chairman Joseph Cryan, above, could wind up as Assembly Majority Leader, if Gov. Jon Corzine picks Bonnie Watson Coleman as the Democratic nominee for Lt. Governor.

The bigger inside contest if Bonnie Watson Coleman leaves the Legislature to run for Lt. Governor is who would succeed her as Assembly Majority Leader.  Her two main competitors when she won the post after the 2005 election, Neil Cohen and Wilfredo Caraballo, are no longer in the Legislature.  The race is significant because next Majority Leader could become Assembly Speaker someday.

The conventional wisdom is that Assemblyman Joseph Cryan (D-Union), the Democratic State Chairman, would be a leading candidate for Majority Leader.  Cryan has a strong relationship with Speaker Joseph Roberts and with Democratic Party leaders across the state.  Watson Coleman was the Democratic State Chair before she became Majority Leader.

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This week former Assemblyman Neil Cohen was indicted for viewing child pornography on state owned computers located in the legislative office he had shared with State Senator Raymond J. Lesniak and Assemblyman, Union County Undersheriff, Democratic State Committee Chairman, Union Township Municipal Chairman Joseph Cryan. It has been six months since Cohen was spirited away to commit himself to a psychiatric facility to the time that the Attorney General announced that a Grand Jury had handed up an indictment. There have been many here in Union County who had given up on ever hearing anything more about the case certain that Cohen had been given special treatment because of his station in life or politics depending how you look at it.

Former Assemblyman Neil Cohen (D-Roselle) was indicted today by the State Attorney General’s office for possession of child pornography and official misconduct, months after two of his fellow legislators turned him in after finding suspicious images on his office computer.

“We charge that Mr. Cohen used the computer equipment in his taxpayer-funded legislative office to view child pornography, printing out copies which were accessible to others in the office,” said Attorney General Milgram. “In doing so, he abused his office and, like all who seek out child pornography, he supported the suppliers who exploit and sexually abuse children. We are committed to vigorously enforcing our child pornography laws as part of our broader efforts to combat predatory behavior against children.”

In July, State Sen. Ray Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) and Assemblyman Joe Cryan (D-Union) notified state police after a staffer found what appeared to be pornographic images involving minors on a computer in the legislative office that they shared with Cohen.

Cohen, a 16-year veteran Democrat from the Assembly, resigned shortly after the allegations surfaced and checked into an undisclosed mental health institution. Aside from a one-sentence letter tendering his resignation, Cohen has not been heard from since.