Proposed bill would keep crooks from seeking elected office for 10 years
Originally published in
New York Post
A former federal prosecutor turned state senator is pushing for a new law to bar ex-pols convicted of felony crimes from running for office for at least 10 years.
Sen. Todd Kaminsky (D-Nassau) said he will put on a full-court press to pass the bill next year after The Post reported that disgraced ex-Bronx Assemblyman Eric Stevenson, who was convicted in 2014 of pocketing more than $22,000 in bribes to help local developers, is running for his old seat in 2020.
“With 125,000 people in the district we can find someone who is not a criminal to represent them,” said Kaminsky. “We want to restrain those who abuse the public trust from running for public office.”
The legislation would bar individuals from holding public office or positions of political party leadership for a period of ten years when convicted of certain felonies and also prohibit them from joining a political party for a period of five years following the completion of any sentence.
Kaminsky said he was hopeful that his bill would be introduced in the state Assembly next year.
Before his election to the senate, Kaminsky was a federal prosecutor in the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.
He helped prosecute and convict former state Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada, ex-Assemblyman Jimmy Meng and former Congressman Michael Grimm for felony crimes.
