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ALBANY — The campaign kitty that Gov. Paterson is using to pay his legal bills — and that he was expected to tap to pay his $62,125 ethics fine — is nearly empty, and he may soon have to jettison the high-priced lawyer representing him in the 2009 World Series ticket scandal, The Post has learned.
Paterson, it was learned, barely has enough cash left in his war chest to pay the massive fine levied against him Monday by the state Public Integrity Commission for accepting free tickets from the Yankees and then lying under oath to cover his tracks.
While good-government groups have denounced the widespread use of campaign funds to pay lawyers defending politicians against charges of criminal and ethics violations, they’re especially outraged that Paterson was expected to use the account to pay off a fine imposed for breaking state law and lying about it.
“It is a telling indictment of New York’s inadequate election law that there could be any question at all whether a fine like this one, levied for intentional misconduct, could be paid out of campaign funds,” said Common Cause New York Executive Director Susan Lerner.
Paterson has run up nearly $1 million in legal fees fighting off three different ethics and criminal investigations, hiring prominent defense lawyer Theodore Wells, who sources close to the governor say is being paid about $1,000 an hour.
“I don’t know how much longer Ted Wells is going to keep representing him. The governor really doesn’t have a pot to piss in,” the source told The Post, which first reported the story about Paterson’s freebie tickets.
Last night, Paterson had dinner at La Carne Grill on the East Side with state Senate Democratic leader John Sampson and Brooklyn state Sen. Eric Adams.
Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo was expected to attend, according to a source, but did not show.
Paterson, who said it was a “business dinner,” refused to comment on the ethics fine, referring all questions to his lawyer.
State Board of Elections spokesman John Conklin said there is no legal precedent to pay a fine for ethical violations using campaign funds. While the board wouldn’t have to first approve of Paterson’s use of campaign funds to do so, such an action would be subject to review if the board received a formal complaint.
State law says campaign funds can be used only for purposes directly related to public office. As of the end of November, Paterson has just $225,000 remaining in an account that had $3 million a year ago, and $100,000 of that is tied up in a line of credit for his former campaign headquarters, it was learned.
Since that last filing, he’s run up even more bills with Wells, a source close to Paterson said.
Paterson, meanwhile, continued to stonewall on whether he would challenge the unprecedented fine imposed after the commission concluded he broke state law by taking free World Series tickets last year and then lied under oath about how he got them.
Paterson could challenge the fine in state Supreme Court but such an action, if he is represented by Wells, could cost more than the amount of the fine, two sources close to Paterson said.