Ethics Complaint Filed Against Senator Vitter
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed a bar complaint against Senator David Vitter (R-LA) with the Louisiana Office of Disciplinary Counsel today. The complaint stems from Vitter’s alleged involvement with prostitutes in the infamous DC Madam scandal, at brothels in New Orleans, and with an individual prostitute who alleges the Senator is a former regular client. Soliciting for prostitution is illegal in both Washington, DC, and Louisiana.
According to the Times-Picayune, Senator Vitter recently requested that the Department of Justice open an investigation into the community organizing group ACORN, which is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana. ACORN staff in several offices were videotaped allegedly giving advice to two individuals who claimed to be a prostitute and pimp.
In a press release, CREW’s executive director Melanie Sloan said, “Senator Vitter’s zeal to see ACORN criminally investigated for offering advice in setting up a prostitution ring reminded me he has yet to be held accountable for his own role in a prostitution ring. While ACORN’s conduct is indefensible, so is Senator Vitter’s and what is good for the goose is good for the gander.”
See the full article from “Ms. Magazine”
New Orleans Adult Entertainment: Maddow: Vitter ‘throwing stones from his glass brothel’
October 2, 2009
Maddow: Vitter ‘throwing stones from his glass brothel’
Ethics watchdog: Vitter’s ‘hypocrisy is astonishing’
An ethics watchdog group has filed a complaint with the Louisiana Bar against Sen. David Vitter (R-LA), accusing him of violating professional conduct rules with his patronage of prostitutes.
“By repeatedly committing the crime of soliciting for prostitution, Sen. Vitter violated the rules of professional conduct for lawyers and should be investigated and disciplined for his misconduct,” Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) said in a statement.
As CREW openly admits, it was prompted to file the complaint after what it saw as a hypocritical attack by Vitter against community organizer ACORN, several of whose members were recently caught on tape giving advice to a couple pretending to be a pimp and prostitute.
RAW STORY reported two weeks ago that Vitter’s vocal condemnations of ACORN exposed him to charges of hypocrisy, as the Louisiana senator admitted two years ago to having been a client of the “DC Madam,” Deborah Jeane Palfrey. His phone number had been found on her calling list. He is also alleged to have solicited two other prostitutes.
See the full article from “Raw Story”
… We’ve been in Louisiana a long time, since 1976, and they haven’t built a stick big enough to chase us out of Louisiana, and it isn’t because they haven’t thought about it,” Rathke said.
Rathke was in Washington to talk about his new book, “Citizen Wealth: Winning the Campaign to Save Working Families,” at Busboys and Poets, a bookstore, restaurant and café with a decidedly left-wing bent and clientele. But the small crowd for Rathke’s book talk included correspondents for the conservative magazine National Review, and the ironically titled Web site biggovernment.com, whose viral videotapes have brought ACORN to the edge of ruin.
The videotapes, made with a hidden camera by a young man posing as a pimp and a young woman playing the part of a prostitute, showed ACORN workers in several cities offering helpful advice on how to set up an illegal business.
N. O. Comedy Fest Le Chat Noir, 715 St. Charles Ave., 581.5812. Sketch comedy by The Grand National Championships, Orphaned on Purpose and The (original) Great Depressions, stand-up comedy of Kenneth LaFrance, comedy and music from Reed Wiley, and the improv madness of Brown. Come laugh the night away and be ready for a few tasty surprise guests. Hosted by Liam Kraus. Open Thurs at 8; plays Oct. 9, 10 at 8 and Oct. 11 at 6. Call for ticket pricing.
VIAGARA FALLS Westwego Performing Arts Theatre, 177 Sala Ave., Westwego, 885.2000. A comedy play by Joao Machado and Lou Cutell. Two old buddies, a call girl and a little blue pill. T. J. Castronovo directs Dane Rhodes, David Jacobs and Cindy Mariangeli in this new comedy. Performances Fri-Sat at 7:30 and Sun at 2 through Oct. 18. (No performance on Oct. 16). Tickets: $30 adults, $27 seniors/military, $20 students, $15 children. Parental discretion is advised.
Sloan asked the state Office of Disciplinary Counsel to investigate whether Vitter violated the state’s rule of professional conduct that says it is professional misconduct for a lawyer to “commit a criminal act especially one that reflects adversely on the lawyer’s honestly, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects.”
Charles Plattsmier, chief deputy counsel for the Office of Discplinary Counsel, said by Supreme Court rules he can’t say anything about a complaint filed with the office, even to confirm or deny that one has been submitted.
In 2008, CREW filed an ethics complaint with the Senate Ethics Committee based on Vitter’s telephone number being on the list of the so-called “D.C. Madam,” Deborah Jeane Palfrey, who committed suicide after her conviction on federal charges related to her escort service. But the committee threw out the ethics complaint, in part, because it was based on accusations against Vitter before he was elected to the Senate, when he was a member of the House.
Watchdog group files bar complaint against Sen. Vitter over prostitution involvement
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The irony, of course, is that Vitter himself has been involved in a real prostitution ring, confessing to a “serious sin” after his phone number was found in a published list of phone records of the so-called “D.C. Madam’s” prostitution service in Washington in 2007. Vitter has also been accused of purchasing the services of prostitutes in New Orleans.
That irony did not go unnoticed by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a nonprofit watchdog group. This week CREW filed a bar complaint with the Louisiana Office of Disciplinary Counsel for violating the state’s rules of professional conduct for lawyers. Under both D.C. and Louisiana law, it is a crime to solicit for prostitution, while under state rules for lawyers it is professional misconduct to “commit a criminal act, especially one that reflects adversely on the lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness as a lawyer in other respects.”
New Orleans Strip Clubs: Editorial: Former New Orleans tech chief Greg Meffert shows his …
October 1, 2009
Former New Orleans technology chief Greg Meffert finally took the stand in the civil trial in which he, Mayor Ray Nagin and Dell Inc. face accusations of conspiring to steal crime-camera technology from two city vendors. Only time will tell whether Mr. Meffert’s testimony will hurt him or help him in that case and in a criminal probe of the crime cameras.
Former New Orleans technology chief Greg Meffert leaves court after testifying Tuesday.Either way, Mr. Meffert’s testimony made clear his lack of an ethical compass and his corroded view of what constitutes conflict of interest. His views may help explain why the city wasted millions of dollars on useless crime cameras provided by some of Mr. Meffert’s friends. That’s something federal investigators are unlikely to overlook.
Testifying about his tenure at City Hall, Mr. Meffert defended his use of a credit card billed to a firm owned by city contractor Mark St. Pierre while Mr. Meffert was a city official. Mr. Meffert rang up more than $130,000 in charges, including $11,800 in cruise trips, $6,200 in strip clubs and more than $6,000 in home-decor purchases.
A blend of jazz joints, strip clubs, bars and restaurants, visitors can find everything from live sex to four-star dining on Bourbon Street. They also can count on being snared by barkers determined to lure them into one place or another, or another or another.
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The Bourbon Street tradition springs from the days when doors at strip clubs were closed. A barker would call people over and open the door for a quick peak at a dancer on stage, tempting them to go inside.
Nowadays, the doors are often open and photos of strippers posted outside leave nothing to the imagination. Still, barkers try to steer customers inside, often working in pairs and moving well out into the street to snare passers-by. The practice also can be found at music clubs and other attractions.
See the full article from “MSN Money”
New Orleans Escorts: Complaint just bad publicity for Vitter?
October 1, 2009
An expert on legal and judicial ethics in Louisiana doubts the state office overseeing lawyer conduct will find cause to discipline U.S. Sen. David Vitter on allegations he broke the law years ago with his connection to Washington prostitutes.
‘‘As a technical matter, this is something that the office could look into and there is no statute of limitations with regard to bringing a disciplinary action,’’ said Dane Ciolino, a Loyola University law professor who tracks attorney discipline cases.
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Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington said this week it filed a complaint with the Louisiana Office of Disciplinary Counsel arising from Vitter’s admission of a ‘‘serious sin’’ in 2007 after his phone number appeared in records of a Washington prostitution ring. Vitter, a Republican, has not been charged with a crime and refused to discuss the issue.
New Orleans Escorts: Future of Vitter complaint unclear
October 1, 2009
Associated Press – September 30, 2009 4:54 PM ET
NEW ORLEANS (AP) – It’s unclear when voters will know whether anything other than publicity was generated by a complaint filed against U.S. Sen. David Vitter, R-La., with a state office that disciplines lawyers.
Louisiana’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel is prohibited from saying anything about a complaint until – and unless – an investigation leads to formal charges. The case could take months or years to resolve, says Dane Ciolino, a Loyola law professor who tracks such cases.
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington says it filed a complaint Tuesday stemming from the appearance of Vitter’s phone number in records of a prostitution ring. His office says the complaint is an attempt to draw attention from Democrats’ ties to the controversial ACORN organization.
See the full article from “WXVT”