Legal Commentary

AG Blumenthal?s Record

By Jonathan H. Adler

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal is in the news for misrepresenting his military record, but Fergus Cullen would like to focus on his record as AG.  He reviews Blumenthal?s various efforts at legal grandstanding and regulation through litigation.  This episode in particular caught my eye.

In 2003, he sued Computers Plus Center for $1.75 million in damages for allegedly selling state government machines without specified parts. Mr. Blumenthal issued a press release accusing the business owner, Gina Malapanis, of fraud: ?No supplier should be permitted to shortchange or overcharge the State without severe consequences,? he said. ?We will vigorously pursue this case to recover taxpayer money and send a strong message about zero tolerance for contractor misconduct.? Ms. Malapanis was even arrested in her home on seven first-degree larceny charges.In 2008 the charges against Ms. Malapanis were dismissed. As for the civil case, she refused to plead guilty and countersued the state for abusing its power and violating her constitutional rights. The jury, recoiling at the overly aggressive action that ruined her business, awarded her a whopping $18 million in January. In a handwritten note on court documents, the jury foreman said the state had engaged in a ?pattern of conduct? that harmed Ms. Malapanis?s reputation, and cited the state?s press releases impugning her integrity, some of which came from Mr. Blumenthal. Mr. Blumenthal is appealing the decision.

Full post as published by The Volokh Conspiracy on May 22, 2010 (boomark / email).