The news that Democrat Morse Arberry has filed to run for Congress is an ugly reminder of Cortez Masto’s utter dereliction of duty as Attorney General. Cortez Masto orchestrated a plea deal that allowed Morse, who was charged with pocketing $121,000 in unreported campaign contributions, off the hook for six felony counts in exchange for a misdemeanor plea. The case was a loud and clear signal to Nevadans that Cortez Masto puts politics above the law.
Nevada political reporter Jon Ralston wrote at the time: “As one Democrat — yes, Democrat — said of the Arberry deal made for a Democrat by a Democrat: ‘Horrific. Embarrassing for all of us.’”
See below for the full report from Ralston.
Arberry Case Reinforces Double Standards
By Jon Ralston
October 23, 2011
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Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto has used her own conversion scheme — transforming six felony charges into a misdemeanor — to penalize another — ex-Assemblyman Morse “Moose” Arberry’s turning $121,000 in campaign funds he never reported into personal cash.
In so doing, Cortez Masto has made Arberry’s attorney, George Kelesis, an early nominee for Lawyer of the Decade, has let the ex-lawmaker off with a wrist massage for his depredations and has sent a message to all elected officials that they need not worry if they decide to commit copycat crimes.
There are legal nuances here — I’ll get to them. But this is not in dispute: A lawmaker with a quarter-century of experience did not report, as is required by statute, $121,000 in campaign contributions and then deposited the money in a personal account.
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This is as close to a slam-dunk, open-and-shut, choose-your-cliché case as you can get, folks. They had bank records detailing the deposits. They have the contribution forms showing the checks were not disclosed. And, on those same forms, they have Arberry’s signature beneath where it states, “I declare under penalty of perjury ….”
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As one Democrat — yes, Democrat — said of the Arberry deal made for a Democrat by a Democrat: “Horrific. Embarrassing for all of us.”
The perception is even worse for an attorney general who indicted a GOP lieutenant governor (Brian Krolicki) for financial mismanagement but never alleged he enriched himself — as Arberry did — before the case fell apart. Many will argue Cortez Masto was willing to go to the wall for a lesser offense against a Republican while letting an outrageous crime by a Democrat go virtually unpunished. (Arberry, claiming destitution, has a $100-a-month restitution requirement, which means he has to pay it off before his 175th birthday.)
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The message here is atrocious: Different standards for politicians, different standards for Democrats, different standards for Nevada.