According to the Associated Press, New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer is reported to be or have been a client of a “high-end prostitution ring called Emperors Club VIP.” This morning, Governor Spitzer publicly apologized to his family and the public, “but did not not elaborate on a bombshell report that he has been involved in a prostitution ring.”
The story is still breaking, but it forces me to wonder if Governor Spitzer will be prosecuted for patronizing a prostitute, if it turns out that is what he did. As we all know, both parties involved in prostitution are breaking the law.
More to the point, as the DC Madam, Deborah Jeane Palfrey, is prosecuted in federal court for running a prostitution ring, it will be interesting to see how things develop with Governor Spitzer. One of the DC Madam’s big gripes is that, though the government has the names and identities of plenty of her customers and *ahem* female contractors, only she – Deborah Jeane Palfrey – is being prosecuted.
Back when I was in law school at Columbia, I did research for the late Professor Curt Berger, who was a property expert. Professor Berger once asked me to research how many women versus how many men were arrested for prostitution (in New York state, as I recall). By far, the women outnumbered the men. Lovely…. Will the Eliot Spitzer situation, when juxtaposed with the DC Madam prosecution, prove the point further?
Stay tuned.
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Hoisted on his own petard…
Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.
That’s the kicker, right? That Spitzer appears to have been so… dumb about how he conducted his illicit business, despite being a prosecutor, that he is going to be easy to slice and dice.
There are at least a couple options under which Spitzer could face charges, above and beyond being a sleaze. The Mann Act and anti-structuring laws, seem to be the most popular options. If he used any public funds in his tryst(s), including use of any staff or security time, expect some big names in NY to press for some prosecution for something. It’s likely his lawyers over at Paul, Weiss will find a way to avoid any charges if he agrees to resign his post.
Maybe he could do community service as Dick Grasso’s butler…
I just heard Congressman King call Eliot (client # 9) the most self-righteous person he had ever met.
Maybe I am jaded but this type of behavior from politicians no longer shocks me. What I find inexplicable is the wife is always there by the disgraced politician’s side. I would hold my own press conference announcing my intention to file for divorce. The call girl got $ 4300 for this tryst. If I was the wife I would be mad about that waste of money as well.
It’s getting to the point where we can no longer trust any ethics reform proposals for our public servants which come from a member of a major political party.
http://www.jeffwartman.com/2008/03/new-york-governor-eliot-spitzer-linked.html