Panel hears Paterson's Yankee tickets case

Gov. David A. Paterson attends the New York Yankees World Series Victory Celebration parade in lower Manhattan. (Nov. 6, 2009) Credit: Getty Images
A lawyer for New York’s Public Integrity Commission says Gov. David A. Paterson violated ethics laws by soliciting five World Series tickets last year from the New York Yankees, a registered lobbyist.
Bridget Holohan, the commission’s associate counsel, says at a hearing Tuesday that testimony from Yankees officials and former Paterson staff will show the governor never intended to pay for the tickets — worth more than $2,000 — before a press report on the arrangement.
Paterson, who has denied wrongdoing, did not attend. Theodore Wells, his lawyer, requested an adjournment until a related attorney general’s office probe is complete.
The request was denied and the hearing is continuing.
The Public Officers Law prohibits officials from soliciting or receiving gifts with more than a nominal value. Violators can be fined.
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