The financial disclosure issue has found its way into the spotlight in recent days as federal prosecutors presented evidence that former House speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, who is on trial facing corruption charges, was burdened with $50,000 in credit card debt.
DiMasi was not required to report his heavy debt on his annual financial filings with the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission. At his trial, prosecutors argue that such debt helped drive him to take illegal payoffs.
DiMasi is charged with concocting a scheme in which a software firm funneled $65,000 to him while he pushed state officials to grant a lucrative contract to the company. If DiMasi’s credit card debt had been disclosed, it might have raised red flags about his troubled finances....
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"Prosecutors describe soaring DiMasi debt" by Milton J. Valencia, Globe Staff / June 2, 2011
Salvatore F. DiMasi racked up so much personal debt while speaker of the state House of Representatives that he sought relief by soliciting kickbacks from a Burlington software company seeking business with the state, according to prosecutors and a witness in federal court yesterday.
Testifying in DiMasi’s public corruption trial, prosecution witness Andrea Roller said DiMasi and his wife saw their consumer debt climb from some $20,000 in 2005 to $275,000 in September 2007, three years after he became speaker.
The debt, fed by what prosecutors said was an “extravagant lifestyle,’’ included money owed under a $250,000 line of credit extended by DiMasi’s friend and financial adviser, Richard Vitale, according to Roller, an accountant in the US attorney’s office who combed through DiMasi’s financial records....
The overall tally of his personal debts did not include the $500,000 mortgage DiMasi had on his North End condominium or the $400,000-plus mortgage his wife had on property in Needham.
Prosecutors sought to use the overview of DiMasi’s finances to show he had a motive to engineer state contracts for the Cognos company in exchange for secret payments.
Roller testified that as speaker DiMasi was no longer earning the $200,000-plus salary he made in a private law practice in 2003. Once he became speaker in 2004, he could not handle the case load he once did, and he saw his income drop below $40,000 in 2007.
According to state figures, DiMasi made $93,237 as a legislator in 2007. His wife, Debbie, had an annual income of $72,000, according to Roller, who did not give the source of Debbie DiMasi’s earnings.
All along, according to campaign finance reports and other state records, Salvatore DiMasi was enjoying the perks that came with the office of speaker: He had a coveted North End parking deal with the Boston Redevelopment Authority for $55 a month.
Related: Boston's Prime Parking Spots
His campaign account also paid for outings and for the use of a black Lincoln Navigator sport utility vehicle....
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Related:
Political heavy hitters poised for testimony in DiMasi trial
Witness tells of DiMasi pressure
The state’s former head of information technology testified yesterday that Massachusetts did not need the type of software that House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi was pushing in 2006 and that she would not have recommended it if DiMasi had not pressed her to do so.
Ex-Patrick adviser says DiMasi sped contract
A former adviser to Governor Patrick testified that in spring 2007 Salvatore F. DiMasi, then the speaker of the House, tucked language authorizing the purchase of computer software into an emergency spending package, even though the bill was intended to finance only “truly essential’’ services.
"Witness says deal OK’d to mollify DiMasi; Hoped it would help on other legislation" May 26, 2011|By Milton J. Valencia, Globe Staff
The state’s former budget chief told a federal jury yesterday that she approved what turned out to be a questionable contract with a Burlington software company in 2007 in part to mend rocky relations between the Patrick administration and House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi.
Testifying in DiMasi’s corruption trial, Leslie A. Kirwan said she was relieved once the $13 million contract with Cognos was signed, because the speaker had been so invested in the matter, lobbying her, her subordinates, and other administration officials....
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Governor Patrick to testify in DiMasi corruption trial
In a historic appearance on the witness stand, Governor Deval Patrick told a federal jury that former House speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi aggressively lobbied him for a multimillion-dollar software contract in 2007, then asked Patrick to publicly deny his involvement.
Keeping his cool through a strange, historic day on stand
Governor Deval Patrick appeared calm, almost pensive, as he spoke for nearly two hours about his involvement in approving a software contract at the center of the corruption case of former House speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi.
Also see: Vitale pivotal to Cognos deal, secretary says
Related: DiMasi's Defense
DiMasi's Greed Destroyed Friendship
DiMasi Trial Briefs
Dirty DiMasi
I feel like I need a shower.
Next day update: DiMasi lawyers urge judge to toss out corruption charges
