Current Alabama Attorney General Troy King must either step down from office or he must be removed by the legislature. Today brings more news of improper, unethical, and possibly illegal conduct by AG King and his minions:
MONTGOMERY - Alabama Attorney General Troy King asked Roy Johnson last year to provide money to a victims' advocacy group while his office was investigating the state's two-year college system, headed by Johnson as chancellor.
Miriam Shehane, executive director of Victims of Crime and Leniency, said King accompanied her to a meeting with Johnson to ask the two-year college system to provide grant money for VOCAL.
The meeting, in March 2006, came months after the attorney general's office and federal prosecutors began investigating the two-year college system. A spokesman for King said the request was not improper because King was not asking for anything for himself.
This is not hard: The AG cannot ask for favors from people whom his office is investigating. It reeks of bribery, extortion and just plain ‘ol corruption. Why Troy King can’t understand that is beyond me.
This is just the latest in the ethical mishaps of our esteemed AG. Dan at Between the Links has complied an ongoing list of Troy King's Greatest Hits:
Quote:
Accepted luxury box seats from Alabama Power without reporting it to the Alabama Ethics Commission or Alabama citizens. Although he may not have been required to report it, he still accepted the seats during an election year from a company whose customers he is supposed to represent before the Public Service Commission.
King reimbursed Alabama Power $436 for meals only after the utility company educated the attorney general about ethics law. Power company officials explained to him that they could not pay for it since they were not physically present at the meals.
When confronted about the seats by the Birmingham News, he claimed there was no conflict of interest and said it was like taking a campaign contribution.
While conducting an investigation of the two-year college system, King asked a target of the investigation, former Chancellor Roy Johnson, to find a job for the mother of his staff member. Although Johnson wasn’t then being specifically investigated for it, he had been accussed of wrongly handing out jobs as favors to friends and family.
The controversy from the hiring scandel eventually forced King to step aside from the two-year college investigation and delegate it to the St. Clair District Attorney.
Advocated the death penalty for sex offenders during the 2006 campaign, despite that a 1977 Supreme Court case seems to indicate that it would be considered unconstitutional. [By the way, part of the AG's job description is to uphold the laws of the state of Alabama and the United States...which is the opposite of what he is advocating]
Wrote a 2005 AG opinion (AGO 2005-063) that said indigent defense attornies were not eligible for overhead expenses. King was acussed trying to create policy through his legal opinions. This seemed to be confirmed when the Alabama Supreme Court unanimously ruled against the opinion.
Wrote another 2005 opinion (AGO 2005-013) that stated that a certain seat on the commission that oversees the Department of Environmental Management required a bachelor’s degree in Ecology. King was acussed of issuing a political opinion in an effort to remove the Siegelman-appointed member who holds that position, Pat Byington, who does not have a degree in Ecology. This seems likely since the statute (Ala. Code 22-22A-6(b)(6)) King refers to clearly states that the position only requires any accreditted bachelor’s degree and because there were no accreditted Ecology programs in Alabama (and few elsewhere) when the statute was written. The judge who tossed the suit all but ridiculed King’s opinion.
Assistant Attorney General Don Valeska knowingly lied in court about evidence, violating Alabama’s Rules of Ethics and causing a capital murder case to be dismissed and later a new trial was ordered. King is not directly responsible for Valeska’s lack of professionalism, but it is interesting that Valeska does not seem to have been sanctioned for his misconduct, and he continues his position as the chief of the AG’s Violent Crimes Division.
Wore an ankle bracelet for several days to “push” the legislature to pass a law requiring some repeat sex offenders to wear the GPS tracking device after release from prison. The law passed both houses unanimously, as expected, confirming for many that the “push” was unnecessary and was actually performed for political reason.
Filed a lawsuit to declare a state law concerning legislativly-disbursed grant money unconstitutional. There’s nothing highly controversial in his personal opinion on the grants, but his own website explains that the duties of the attorney general include, “He represents the State in all court proceedings wherein the constitutionality of a state statute is challenged.” Yet in this case, he challenged the state.
On top of being on the wrong side of the courtroom in that case, the Supreme Court ruled against him in a 9-0 decision, further confirming that the entire suit was nothing more than election-year politics.
Filed a headline-grabbing lawsuit against 4 gas stations after Hurricane Katrina for price-gouging. Eventually brought to a settlement, King only cites a profit at one gas station over the specified time for $65.72 — that’s total profit, not excess.
When asked by the current CW staff if his views had changed, he only said he would now use “more judicious words.”
Additionally, King purportedly allows unindicted Siegleman co-conspirator Susan Kennedy to continue serving as a lawyer in his office. Kennedy supposedly testified to her role in conspiracy during Siegleman's corruption trial. (I guess Ole Troy Boy feels like he needs to keep her around for advice).
Where there's this much smoke, there's got to be fire. And keep in mind that the above are only things that King has either been proven to have done or has admitted to doing. We don't know how much more fraud, unethical conduct, deceit and illegality is out there.
Even if you supported him in the recent election, you must now see that this man is more than just a snake in the grass -- he's a flat out lying crook who need to be removed from his position and punished!!!
Last edited by demopolite; 01-29-2007 at 15:24 PM.
Oh how we danced and we swallowed the nights for it was all ripe for dreaming
Oh how we danced away all of the lights we've always been out of our minds
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I love you when you talk all anti-Troy King...it's the kinda love that only maximum security inmates could really know or appreciate...and luckily, there's no registry for these feelings
You had me at 'snake in the grass'...which, coincidentally, is a game that many hardcore felons like to play...from what I've been told...
Dissent Welcomed; Agreement Encouraged
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I know that several of you have shown some support of AG King in the past (link).
I hope that the above information will change your mind.
Oh how we danced and we swallowed the nights for it was all ripe for dreaming
Oh how we danced away all of the lights we've always been out of our minds
sounds to me like someone has a personal agenda here also.... since you have already posted a link of my statements in the past about troy king... well you should know that it would take more than some rantings from alablawg to change my opinion.
but if your wishes were to happen and he was removed from office based who would you have there.... we can check the closet of that person for you . i believe that the defense attorney statements made by king would tell me most of what i would need to know about your mission.
chance favors the prepared mind
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Sgt 501 -- when every single newspaper in Alabama is reporting King's unethical conduct, it makes you look downright foolish to think that our AG is a good man. I want a lawyer, and a good one, in that office, not a lying, bribing, con-artist like King. We all deserve better than that.
He's a crook, plain and simple. He has had unethical interactions bordering on bribery with individuals that he is investigating. He does not punish his employees when they break the law, even when their breaking the law results in a murderer going free.
I challenge you to go seek out the information for yourself. It's all there, right out in the open: the bribery, the trickery, the unethical conduct, the deceit.
I thought you were supposed to help us catch criminals, Sgt. 501. Why are you defending one so adamantly?
As for a personal agenda: Damn right I have a personal agenda -- my tax money shouldn't be paying for some incompetent, malicious, unethical twit to break the law and completely screw up Alabama's justice system while he tries to make a name for himself in the Montgomery political game.
What's your agenda?
Last edited by demopolite; 01-29-2007 at 16:14 PM.
Oh how we danced and we swallowed the nights for it was all ripe for dreaming
Oh how we danced away all of the lights we've always been out of our minds
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i can only tell you the things that have been done by his office for this city and department. under prior ag's we had to beg for any assistance from the ag's office. its not the case we have had to investigate several incidents that we needed state assistance on and have been helped everytime we ask. that is where i am coming from. do you work with an agency or any entity that is directly involved with king on a regular basis or is this all the things that you have researched or heard.
and you are right i am here to catch criminals, if there was evidence of a crime by the ag's office that involved me i would be the first to persue it. but my question to you is if he is so corrupt , and these things you quated are against the law then why has ne not been arrested or removed already. why was he allowed to run .
and last if you wish to call me foolish because i have a different belief than you do, and support someone that you do not thats up to you. again who would you have in office...???
I BEG you to read all of the articles in every single state newspaper in which Troy King is described as COMMITTING THE SAME CRIME WHICH HIS OFFICE IS INVESTIGATING IN THE JUNIOR COLLEGE SYSTEM.
Do you understand the gravity of Mr. King's actions with regard to the Junior College investigation? Imagine if you were asked to investigate someone because they were accused of selling pot. When you got there, you asked them if they could sell pot to your employee's mom. That is analagous to what TK has done.
I still don't understand your comment about defense attorneys. Regardless of what you think about defense attorney's, the fact is that the Alabama legislature (twice) and the Alabama supreme court (twice) said that defense attorneys
Of course he's going to try to make the police happy. For probably the same reason that he's keeping an unindicted co-conspirator of Seigleman's around: he needs all the help he can get to get away with all of the stuff he's trying to pull.
The SOB is a criminal, plain and simple. The fact that you have a "different opinion" than me doesn't make you seem foolish -- the fact that you seem to be blatantly ignoring all of the unethical and illegal conduct by TK because he helped you out on some investigations does, however.
As for "who would I have in office:" Anyone -- male, female, black, white, old, young, Republican, Democrat, Communist, Fascist -- who will (1) obey the laws of the State of Alabama, (2) uphold the laws of the State of Alabama, (3) do the job that he/she was hired to do (rather than just politically grandstanding, and (4) stop wasting the taxpayer's money.
Quote:
but my question to you is if he is so corrupt , and these things you quated are against the law then why has ne not been arrested or removed already. why was he allowed to run .
(a) Because the ABA has no cajones on bringing ethical actions against publicly elected officals that are also lawyers.
(b) What do you think the bribes, the retention of corrupt associates, and the money being tossed around are for? So that no one will cause a stink.
THAT'S WHY I'M ASKING EVERYONE TO RAISE A STINK. This guy is bad for Alabama -- let's get him the HELL out of the AG's office.
Last edited by demopolite; 01-29-2007 at 16:35 PM.
Oh how we danced and we swallowed the nights for it was all ripe for dreaming
Oh how we danced away all of the lights we've always been out of our minds
When every newspaper in the state is discussing Troy King's improprieties and his unfitness for office (link), I fail to see a "personal" agenda in wanting the SOB out of office.
Oh how we danced and we swallowed the nights for it was all ripe for dreaming
Oh how we danced away all of the lights we've always been out of our minds
