Attorney General Quits After Ethics Inquiry

[Judi Lynn]

Attorney General Quits After Ethics Inquiry
From Times wire reports
August 16, 2006


The state's attorney general resigned after a special prosecutor concluded she violated state ethics laws by intervening in a traffic stop involving her boyfriend.

Zulima V. Farber's live-in boyfriend, lawyer Hamlet Goore, was pulled over by police in Fairview, N.J., for a traffic violation in May, and Farber showed up at the scene in her state car. Goore's van was found to be improperly registered and his license appeared to be suspended, but he was allowed to drive home.

In recent weeks, Farber denied doing anything to influence the police. But a special prosecutor appointed by the governor said in a report issued Tuesday that Farber violated state ethics laws by "approving actions which allowed Mr. Goore to drive his vehicle home."

Farber will step down at the end of the month.
(snip/)

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-briefs16.4aug16,1,4065757.story?coll=la-headlines-nation

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Background
Zulima Farber fled Cuba with her siblings at age 16 following the takeover by Fidel Castro. Living at first with an aunt until her parents emigrated, she graduated from Memorial High School in West New York, and worked her way through Montclair State College and Rutgers University Law School.

Attorney General Farber earlier in her career served as an Assistant Prosecutor in Bergen County and as an Assistant Counsel to then Gov. Brendan Byrne. From 1992 to 1994, she served as state Public Advocate in the Cabinet of former Gov. James Florio. She was the last public advocate to serve in office before former Gov. Christine Todd Whitman abolished the office in 1994. The office was restored in 2005 under legislation signed by former Gov. Richard Codey and Governor Corzine's appointment of Ronald Chen to the position.

Attorney General Farber was reportedly under consideration for a seat on the New Jersey Supreme Court by former Gov. James McGreevey in 2003. McGreevey announced that he would not appoint her to the bench because of unpaid traffic and parking tickets which had led to an arrest warrant being issued for her. The driving record issue would later be raised against General Farber during her confirmation hearing in the New Jersey Senate.
(snip/)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zulima_Farber

[TomInTib]

1. Zulima B. Farber?....damn, I am gonna write some letters...

with a name like that you make it all the way to ....

on edit:

It just seemed so funny at the time..

[MADem]

2. Well, that was profoundly stupid of her, wasn't it?

A long career, trashed over covering up for your boyfriend...way ta go!! She's lucky she got a pass for not paying her parking tickets, which is another STUPID thing she did.

Good grief, this can't be the best or the brightest.

But I was hoping the link talked about Alberto Gonzalez, so I'm in a funk from the get-go.

[ThsMchneKilsFascists]

3. Over a moving violation no less, hubris or what?

[napi21]

4. She must have pi**ed off some people on her way up!

I've lived in 4 different states, and if you are a fair and honest prosecutor or ultimately the AG, nobody would pay any attnetion to this kind of stuff. I don't live in NJ, and never even heard of this AG, but she obviously doesn't have many friends in the business she's in!

I can see why someone would try to help out their boyfriend, and then maybe kick his ass when they got home!! But either she handled this very badly, or she's just not a very well liked and respected AG there.

[ThsMchneKilsFascists]

5. I don't think a fair and esp. honest prosecuter would pull this

but I do agree most of the powers that be wouldn't bat an eyelash at a minor perversion of justice like this on most days

[Peace Patriot]

6. I don't believe ANYTHING I read in the war profiteering corporate news

monopoly press any more. The whole story could be utter crap from beginning to end.

After what these shitface corporate lapdogs did to Kevin Shelley (Democratic Sec of State who sued Diebold and decertified the worst of their election theft machines prior to the 2004 election, and then got "swiftboated" out of office)--not to mention a hundred other examples of goddamned lies--the corporate news monopolies have *COMPLETELY* LOST MY TRUST, even as to the most basic facts of a situation. If I had the wherewithal to investigate this Farber story, I would START WITH which Bushite corporations she may have stepped on the toes of.

[Say_What]

7. Abuse of power leads to resignation of Cuban-American functionary

LOL Wherever there's corruption you can depend on Gusanos being in the center. :crazy:

<clips>

Abuse of power leads to resignation of Cuban-American functionary

In New Jersey this week, we witnessed a case of wasted opportunity. A high-ranking state official was forced to resign so as not to be fired for abuse of power. What makes this case pertinent to our readers is that the official is a Cuban-American woman. And for many residents of South Florida, the juxtaposition of “Cuban-American” and “abuse of power” has a familiar, unpleasant and sad taste.

Now, to the details. As told by the news agencies, New Jersey Attorney General Zulima Farber resigned her post on Tuesday the 15th after holding it for barely seven months. A report from an independent prosecutor appointed by Governor John Corzine determined that Farber violated the state's rules of ethics when she ordered the annulment of two traffic tickets given to her lover, Hamlet Goore.

On May 26, a Fairview, N.J., policeman stopped Goore's car and gave him two tickets: one for driving with a suspended license, the other for driving an unregistered vehicle. Moments later, Farber appeared on the scene and – according to the investigation – ordered the policeman to void the tickets and allow Goore to drive to his home in North Bergen. She followed Goore in her own vehicle. It should be noted that Goore's home is the same as Farber; although they are not married, they share the house.

‘Serious ethical issues’

Once the incident became known, the governor was forced to act. Corzine appointed a retired judge, Richard Williams, as a special prosecutor to investigate the circumstances. Williams' report indicates that, although Farber did not commit a crime per se, “her conduct raises serious ethical issues that need to be addressed.”

http://www.progresoweekly.com/index.php?progreso=Emilio_Paz&otherweek=1155790800

[Judi Lynn]

8. The last paragraph from El Progreso is pure magic!

It is therefore sad that Farber committed such an abusive act, an action that embarrasses many Cuban-Americans. Although abuse of power is not the monopoly of Cuban-American office-holders, it is not unknown in South Florida. What's important in this case is the example it projects, especially now when so many people want to impose upon Cuba the methods and practices used in the United States. This particular example has nothing to recommend it.

Three cheers for Emilio Paz, the author.