ALBANY — An aide to Gov. Paterson was deemed “too irresponsible and immature” to keep his job, but state Senate Democratic Conference leader John Sampson of Brooklyn hired him back with a $5,000 pay bump.
Khari Edwards was canned from his $70,000-a-year Paterson-administration post last winter after the state inspector general accused him of offering contradictory evidence during an investigation.
The probe had centered on whether political pressure was exerted on the State Liquor Authority to protect licenses for the Cipriani restaurant chain.
Inspector General Joseph Fisch said Edwards, who served as a deputy to Paterson’s then-aide Carl Andrews, was “ill-suited to serve as a representative of the governor’s office, and recommends that his employment be terminated.”
He added that Edwards’ “testimony showed him to be immature and irresponsible.”
But Sampson, who Democrats installed as their leader during the recent Senate stalemate, hired Edwards on July 21 as a $75,000-a-year “special assistant.”
“Khari Edwards was hired on the merits,” Sampson spokeswoman Selvena Brooks said.