Jason Carter calls for fresh probe into handling of Deal ethics case

Deal, meanwhile, told the AJC he and his staff were “in the dark” over the accusations.

“I think it further proves they are an independent agency, and my office had no operational knowledge,” Deal said.

Carter, a state senator, said taxpayers have been stuck with two bills: $3 million in payments to former ethics commission staffers who sued or threatened to sue the state over the handling of the case, and the salaries of Deal staffers involved in working on a campaign issue while being paid by the state.

“We have to get to the bottom of this,” Carter said. “Otherwise taxpayers are left with those bills, and they get no answers and to me that’s unacceptable.

“I think to me this is outrageous, and it just essentially demonstrated that they believe they are above the law and that they are not willing to operate within it.”

In July 2012, state ethics commission director Holly LaBerge says she received a call from Ryan Teague, Deal’s chief counsel, and texts from chief of staff Chris Riley, according to the memo released by Attorney General Sam Olens’ office in response to an Open Records Act request.

LaBerge claims Teague said, “It was not in the agency’s best interest for these cases to go to a hearing … nor was it in their best political interest either.”

Days later, the commission voted during a public hearing to dismiss the major complaints against Deal, who agreed to pay $3,350 in fees for technical defects to his campaign disclosures. The complaints included claims Deal improperly paid for use of a private aircraft for campaign travel and questioned his use of campaign funds to pay legal fees during his 2010 campaign.

LaBerge’s allegations in the memo represent the first time she has claimed top aides to Deal personally pressured her to quietly settle the cases against the governor and to avoid a public hearing.

Deal said his staffers were trying to find out how an upcoming meeting on his ethics charges was going to be handled.

I’m the governor of this state,” Deal said. “It’s my responsibility to govern, to run government. I can’t try to micromanage everything. People need to act in responsible fashion … all we’ve ever asked for is a fair hearing.”

Carter said he didn’t know whether the governor knew about Teague’s conversation with LaBerge.

“I would be shocked if Ryan Teague was doing this without direction,” he said.

LaBerge’s attorney claims that Olens’ office instructed LaBerge not to mention the memo during testimony in a series of whisteblower lawsuits filed by former commission employees. Olens also didn’t give the lawyers involved in the lawsuit the memo before the trial. Olens’ spokeswoman, Lauren Kane, said no one in the attorney general’s office told anyone to do anything improper.

Carter, a lawyer, said Olens should have released the memo before the trial.

“I think that’s sort of basic legal principle,” he said.

Greg Hecht, a lawyer challenging Olens this year, said it was “shocking” that the attorney general’s office did not hand over the LaBerge memo.

“I can’t understand why they never provided that memo to any of the parties in the whistleblower cases,” he said. “Every lawyer I’ve talked to says it’s inconceivable why this discovery request wouldn’t have included this memo.”

The state agreed to pay nearly $3 million to settle three lawsuits, and a threatened fourth, brought by former commission employees who claim they were fired or forced from office over the Deal investigation or its aftermath.