So what if State Rep Paul Kujawski admitted to violating campaign finance laws-- for the second time in six years? So what if he's being investigated for extorting cash out of local businesses?
If getting arrested for a DUI while driving his mom's car, dropping his pants on the side of a highway, and urinating on the boots of a state trooper couldn't get the guy kicked out of office, then nothing will.
Sal F. DiMasi
It's like an episode of the Sopranos, without the clever plot, lovable characters, and witty punch lines.
Sal DiMasi, former Massachusetts speaker and ex-mob-bookie lawyer, resigned this year after his "associate," Richard Vitale, was pinched on charges of campaign finance and lobbying violations. Vitale, an unregistered lobbyist, was caught soliciting state politicians-- including DiMasi-- to push legislation for his ticket-broker clients. This was around the same time that the notoriously crooked Vitale, who also happened to be DiMasi's accountant, "coincidently" paid the disgraced former speaker's $250G mortgage.
An ensuing state grand jury investigation put a hit on DiMasi's political career-- making him the third Massachusetts speaker in a row to abruptly leave office amid scandal.
The ex-"Mistah Speakah" said in his January resignation speech that he would now be pursuing his "first professional love"-- law.
If that doesn't work out for you Sal, may we suggest a career in "waste management?" After all, your name and phone number were found by the feds in mafia felon Vinny "the Animal" Ferrara's address book-- we highly doubt it was just because you were on his Christmas card list.
James Marzilli
Most politicians like to stay in touch with their constituents. Unfortunately, sleazy state Senator James Marzilli may have taken this concept a little too far. Last June, the shifty-eyed Massachusetts lawmaker was caught groping and sexually assaulting four random women at a Lowell park.
After he was confronted by several police officers, Marzilli led the cops on a foot chase to a nearby parking garage, where he bizarrely identified himself as "Martin Walsh"-- the name of a fellow state politician.
Police soon realized who Marzilli really was-- and the public soon realized the lusty legislator's penchant for lame pickup lines: "The sex is sweet, the sex is sweet, you want it," Marzilli told one of his unwilling paramours, according to the Boston Herald. "Do you have any undergarments under that?"
We can't completely blame Marzilli for his creepy indiscretions, though. You try waking up next to Susan Shaer every morning.
State Rep. Bob Spellane
This Worcester Democrat was nearly booted from his house seat after it was discovered that an employee of UniBank-- who was being paid as a consultant out of Spellane's campaign funds-- let the state rep skip a year's worth of payments on his $340,000 home loan. This is less than a year after Spellane was caught diverting $50,000 of his campaign money for personal use and blamed it on "bad bookkeeping."
State Senator Dianne Wilkerson: Bust-ed!
Over the years she's been charged with everything from tax fraud, to illegal use of campaign funds, to providing false testimony-- but it wasn't until last October that the FBI finally got the money shot. A surveillance camera caught state Senator Dianne Wilkerson stuffing cash bribes from the owner of Dejavu nightclub up her bra.
Middlesex Register of Probate John Buonomo: At least he wasn't stuffing it in his bra.
Last August, surveillance cameras caught Middlesex Register of Probate John Buonomo shoving thousands of dollars worth of change from the Registry of Deed's copy machines down his pants. Who can blame him? The poor guy only makes $110,000 a year.
Astonishingly, even after being indicted by a grand jury and resigning his position in September, Buonomo still somehow managed to win re-election in the Democratic primary a week later.
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