Posted by
Ron Devito on Friday, July 24, 2009 3:49:20 PM
by Dee Reynolds
Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell [on July 23, 2009] asked Attorney
General Dan Sullivan to provide recommendations on how to prevent leaks
of confidential information in ethics probes (Leaks, 2009, ¶1).
Parnell’s
request comes after the leak of an investigator’s confidential and
preliminary report related to an ethics complaint filed against
Governor Sarah Palin (Leaks, 2009, ¶2).
“These leaks must stop,”
Parnell said. “If we allow public officials to be tried and convicted
in the press through abuse of the legal process, then the Executive
Branch is at risk. The rule of law is threatened” (Leaks, 2009, ¶3).
[Lt.
Governor] Parnell said that leaking the investigator’s preliminary
report is just like walking into a courthouse, lifting some notes from
the jurors’ break room and publishing them before all the evidence is
in and before a verdict is reached (Leaks, 2009, ¶4).
[Lt.
Governor] Parnell recognized the need for accountability for public
officials, but said the ethics laws are being abused (Leaks, 2009, ¶5).
“If
confidential information was leaked from our courts, there would be an
outcry,” he said. “There must be respect for the law when it comes to
Executive Branch ethics investigations” (Leaks, 2009, ¶6).
Commentary
Apart
from stopping these leaks, another reform needs to be made to these
ethics laws: "Loser Pays All." In simple terms, the loser in an ethics
case pays the legal bills. If a case is found frivolous,
unsubstantiated, without merit, the complainant pays the legal bills.
If the executive is found guilty of wrong-doing, the executive pays the
bills.
"Loser pays all" would end the shenanigans and
chicanery that have surrounded the ethics complaint process.
Complainants would think twice about filing claims over things like
giving interviews, making speeches, holding a fish or wearing a jacket
-- because they would have to pay the bills. Conversely, an executive
would think twice about committing an unethical act, because doing so
could cost the executive tens of thousands of dollars. That is how it
should be. "Loser pays all" keeps all parties concerned honest and
removes the incentive to abuse or game the system.
In summary, "loser pays all" ensures that the ethics complaint process is used for legitimate ethics complaints.
References
Parnell seeks to end leaks of confidential information. Asks Attorney General to step in. (2009, July 23). State of Alaska, Lieutenant Governor. Retrieved July 24, 2009 from: http://www.ltgov.state.ak.us/news.php?id=4282