For nearly nine months, the committee of 11 state’s attorneys has been reviewing allegations made by Vermont Republican Party vice chair Brady Toensing that Sorrell violated campaign finance law and took official action in exchange for campaign contributions. The panel’s investigation was conducted by Shelburne attorney Tom Little, who was appointed to the role last May by Gov. Peter Shumlin.
The Vermont Press Bureau’s Neal Goswami obtained a draft of Little’s long-overdue report and published it Thursday night. The panel released a finalized version Friday.
According to the report, which largely concerns itself with Toensing’s lesser allegations, Little found no evidence that Sorrell violated campaign finance law. But he declined to investigate the most serious allegation — that Sorrell agreed to file suit against the oil and gas industry at the behest of a Texas law firm that contributed to his campaign while making the request. Sorrell’s office later hired that firm and guaranteed it a percentage of any winnings from the case.
Little and the state’s attorneys determined that “some relevant persons and alleged actions” related to the corruption allegation “lie beyond Vermont’s borders and beyond the scope of this inquiry, making closure of the investigation vis a vis those allegations impossible at this time.”
The report’s authors wrote, “Separate investigatory work is underway to deal with those allegations.” They did not elaborate, but those involved with the inquiry told Seven Days in December that members of the panel had met with Federal Bureau of Investigation officials in Vermont to discuss the matter.
Two of those sources confirmed to Seven Days Friday that the panel had enlisted the Vermont State Police to investigate the allegation — and that the VSP had requested further assistance from the FBI. Paul Holstein, chief division counsel for the FBI’s Albany field office, would not say whether the agency had decided to take up the case.
“It is FBI policy not to comment on or confirm if complaints have been received or if investigations are being conducted,” he said. “Any information the FBI receives is reviewed and handled appropriately.”
According to the report, a proper investigation of the most serious allegation “would need to be done by an investigative body with appropriate jurisdiction, authority and resources.”
“Considering the state and federal criminal law nature of these claims, the [corruption] allegations fall beyond the scope of alleged campaign finance violations and thus beyond the scope of this investigation,” the report’s authors wrote. “No inferences one way or the other should be drawn from this concerning the accuracy of the … allegations.”
Sorrell has always denied Toensing’s charges.
“If federal authorities want to investigate, fine,” he told the Press Bureau on Thursday. “I didn’t violate any criminal laws at all. If they wish to investigate I’ll cooperate with their investigation. I’m not worried about that — at all.”
This story will be updated.
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I’m Just Saying . . . !
I don’t care what anyone else says: 1) Bill Sorrell is GUILTY AS HELL and 2) I’m sure Bill Sorrell is Donald Duck’s lawyer uncle “Lame Duck, Esq.”!
Well, Brooke is also convinced that President Obama is not constitutionally eligible to be President…. so his legal pronouncements should probably be taken with a rather large shaker of salt.
Wonder how many offices he’s going to run losing races for this year?
Vermont Supreme Court’s Professional Responsibility Program
The Vermont Constitution provides the Vermont Supreme Court with the exclusive authority to discipline attorneys. In 1999, pursuant to its constitutional authority, the Supreme Court adopted Administrative Order No. 9.
The Professional Responsibility Board – (“The Board”) is responsible for the supervision of the Program. “The Board’s mission is to protect the public, promote confidence in the integrity of the legal profession, and assist attorneys to achieve and maintain high standards of professional responsibility.”
The Vermont Rules of Professional Conduct – In 1999, the Vermont Supreme Court promulgated the Vermont Rules of Professional Conduct (“the Rules”). The Rules are often referred to as “the ethics rules.” A lawyer who violates the Rules is subject to having a disciplinary sanction imposed against his or her law license.
The Attorney General’s Office has overstepped its constitutional mandate by initiating an investigation (whether founded or unfounded) into an allegation of “practicing law without a license” and Sorrell and his assistant should, themselves, be subjected to sanctions by the Supreme Court’s Professional Responsibility Program coordinated by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, Beth DeBernardi, Esq., Disciplinary Counsel for their transgression.
Professional Responsibility Program detailed at: https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/LC/attydi…
I like the piece referred to the FBI. Will probably get as much attention as Hillary’s emails. Oh well, bye Billy.