Tuesday, October 4th 2011, 10:31 AM
Political consultant John Haggerty's love life will be under scrutiny Tuesday when his ex-mistress takes the stand in his theft trial.
A judge ruled that Fiona Reid, an accountant for Mayor Bloomberg's 2009 re-election campaign, can be questioned about her affair with Haggerty.
Haggerty is charged with pocketing most of a $1.1 million donation Bloomberg made to the Independence Party for a ballot-security operation.
Reid oversaw the budget, but defense lawyers argued prosecutors should stick to the spreadsheets - not the bedsheets - in their questioning.
A lawyer for Haggerty's wife, Noreen Healey, also tried to convince a judge the affair between her husband and Reid should be off-limits.
"She doesn't particularly enjoy having to read an account of what this woman may or may not have been engaged in," said Healey's lawyer, Michael Ambrecht.
Prosecutors contend the shenanigans are relevant since they could explain why Reid signed off on Haggerty's expenses.
"Having a romantic relationship, that is a reason she might not ask those questions," Assistant District Attorney Vanessa Richards argued Monday.
Reid was set to take the stand a day after Bloomberg was called to testify in the closely watched trial.
Bloomberg coolly told the court he's certain Haggerty ripped him off, but was hazy on other details of his campaign operation.
No comments:
Post a Comment