Council Republicans Deliver Middle Finger Again To Taxpayers

The antipathy Republican members of the City-County Council have towards ordinary taxpayers has reared its ugly head again. The Metropolitan Development Committee, chaired by Councilor Kent Smith (R), defeated a proposal that would have required all tax abatements to be approved by the City-County Council in addition to the Metropolitan Development Commission along party lines. Smith was an original sponsor of the proposal with Councilor Brian Mahern but withdrew his support during the hearing after being told by the powers-that-be that there would be no meddling in the good 'ole boy system of passing out tax abatements to politically-connected business owners. During his 2007 campaign, Smith attended all of the property tax protest rallies and pledged his support for requiring council approval of tax abatements. Mayoral candidate Greg Ballard similarly supported this concept, but his economic development chief, Nick Weber, led the testimony in opposition to the proposal. The Marion County Alliance of Neighorhood Associations led the fight for passage of the proposal.

A representative of the Greater Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce testified that passage of the ordinance would put Indianapolis at an economic development disadvantage because it would require an additional layer for businesses to traverse in obtaining a benefit that does not occur in surrounding counties. Councilor Brian Mahern pointed out that the Chamber's assertion was blatantly untrue. In the surrounding counties, a tax abatement is first approved by a county plan commission and then must obtain the approval of the elected commissioners. The Chamber's representative responded that it was much more difficult for businesses to worry about the action of 29 council members rather than four commissioners. In Marion County, unlike other counties, business owners must only obtain approval of the unelected MDC to get a tax abatement.

I guess it's no surprise then that the Republican caucus voted tonight to oust Councilor Robert Cockrum as the Council's president and replace him with Barnes & Thornburg lobbyist Ryan Vaughn. Only the ethically-challenged and self-dealing Vaughn could make former CCC President Monroe Gray look like a boy scout. Professional campaign button collector Michael McQuillen has been elected as the new majority leader, while Marilyn Pfister will succeed Vaughn as the council's vice-president. It's business as usual. Is there any campaign promise my fellow Republicans in this city government won't break? Once again, the grassroots supporters who elected them are left shaking our heads at just how much we were lied to and deceived by Ballard and his Republican colleagues.

Daniels Gets The Threat Posed By Muslim Terrorism

Gov. Mitch Daniels proved himself worthy of the Man of Achievement Award he received last month from Indiana's Anti-Defamation League. Daniels spoke out forcefully against growing anti-Semitism from "very new and strange quarters" and "the astonishing virulence and widespread nature of anti-Semitism" in accepting the award. Daniels expressed dismay that former allies of the Jewish people have gone astray. He cited the United Nations, the academic left and some in the African-American community, such as Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan, as examples of former allies against anti-Semitism who now regularly engage in "vigorous attacks" on the state of Israel. Daniels quipped that when he was a child, he and his friends went out on Halloween to collect candy while young Jewish children collected money for UNICEF, a U.N. relief organization. Now, the U.N. has become a hotbed of anti-Israel and anti-Jewish sentiments he observes.

In listening to Gov. Daniels' remarks, I was particularly impressed by his disregard for political correctness in this moment and willingness to speak out about what needs to be said about the problem of Muslim anti-Semitism and terrorism in this world. "And then most dangerously, a very large sector of one of the great religions of this world openly and unapologetically commit to the threatening and hoping for extinction of the state of Israel, not a fringe movement of that religion but a mainstream portion," Daniels said. "It must be called for what it is." Note that he goes out of his way to disabuse us of the notion spoken by so many in the mainstream media and on the Left that anti-Semitism is "not a fringe movement" but is represented by a "mainstream portion" of the Muslim community.

Gov. Daniels' singled out Indiana's Muslim Alliance for praise because of their immediate response condemning the terrorist attack by Maj. Hasan on his fellow Army soldiers at Ft. Hood. Daniels was less generous in his comments towards Indiana U.S. Rep. Andre Carson, one of two Muslim members of Congress. Noting the lack of universal condemnation of the attacks within the Muslim community, Daniels said, "The congressman from this district in which we are meeting dismissed [Hasan's terrorist attack] as a matter of mental illness, ignoring the fact that there was once a theory called Nazism that encouraged openly hatred of the Jewish people, and encouraged violence against the Jewish people."

Daniels told the audience that the loss of old allies means that it is all the more important that we reach out to find new allies. Daniels expressed disappointment that so many seem willing to turn a blind eye to the growing anti-Semitism in the world today. He lauded Indiana University for its recent announcement that it is establishing the Institute for the Contemporary Study of Anti-Semitism. Indeed, about 67% of documented hate crimes in the U.S. have been committed against Americans because of their Jewish faith according to the most recent federal hate crimes statistics. There were at least 10 times as many anti-Jewish hate crime incidents or offenses in the U.S. last year compared to the number of anti-Muslim hate crime incidents or offenses. Many of the anti-Jewish hate crimes in the U.S. and elsewhere are committed by persons of Muslim faith. This past weekend, a rabbi in Vienna, Austria was savagely attacked by a Muslim man following a menorah lighting ceremony.

City Council To Consider Backdoor Payraise

Indianapolis City-County Councilors will consider a proposal at tonight's council meeting that will allow councilors to earn additional money for attending council committee meetings. Currently, council members are allowed to collect up to $2,480 in additional per diem payments for attendance of up to 40 committee meetings a year. Under Proposal 458 sponsored by Councilor Michael McQuillen (R), councilors will be allowed a per diem payment for up to 50 committee meetings, adding another $620 a year to their pay. Slowly but surely councilors are moving to make the part-time job a full-time job. Councilors presently earn a base pay of $12,240 a year (12% of the mayor's salary of $102,000) but earn more than $17,000 when you factor in their per diem payments. The council president earns an additional $1,982 in annual pay, while other leaders are paid an additional $1,320 a year. Committee chairpersons receive $797 a year in additional pay. A councilor like McQuillen who serves as a committee chairperson will earn a maximum of $17,869 a year if his proposal is adopted. Councilors are also allowed to participate in the employee benefit plans that are offered other full-time elected officials of the City of Indianapolis. Nearly one-third of the councilors work in full-time government-funded jobs at the state or local level. The pay raise comes at a time when city and county agencies are being forced to reduce their budgets due to dropping revenues.

UPDATE: Councilor Dane Mahern moved to send the proposal back to committee at tonight's council meeting, which would have had the effect of killing the proposal. Mahern's motion lost on an 8-21 vote. On a vote of 12-17, the council voted down the proposal. The Republican leadership backed the proposed pay raise, although a number of Republicans like Councilors Bob Lutz, Mike Speedy, Ben Hunter and Christine Scales voted against it. Councilor McQuillen defended it, claiming it would only increase the council's budget a couple of thousand dollars. CCC President Bob Cockrum said it had been many years since the council had voted for a pay raise. That's not altogether true. While it is true their base pay has not been increased for many years, there have been occasional increases in the per diem pay of council members. The problem of some members attending more than 40 council meetings seems to be a self-inflicted problem. Some members sit on several committee, while Councilor Coleman deadpanned that he would like at least one committee appointment. He was stripped of his committee assignments after he bolted the Republican Party to become a Libertarian.

Council Leadership Races Shaping Up

When the Republicans caucus to pick their leadership tomorrow night, it looks like there could be several contested races. Vice President Ryan Vaughn, a lobbyist/attorney for Barnes & Thornburg, will seek to oust veteran President Robert Cockrum. If Vaughn is successful, Barnes & Thornburg will solidify their hold over the Republican-controlled council. As CCC President, Vaughn would also get a seat on the Capital Improvement Board, which will ensure that his law firm will continue to have a say in the affairs of the CIB. Robert Grand, manager of Barnes & Thornburg's Indianapolis office, created controversy when Mayor Ballard appointed him to serve as President of the CIB because of the firm's representation of the Indiana Pacers and the team's owners, the Simon family. Grand recently stepped down from the CIB to make way for new Ballard appointees. Vaughn, you may recall, sought appointment to the senate seat vacated by Sen. Teresa Lubbers earlier this year but was defeated by Scott Schneider, a former City-County Councilor.

There is a race to replace Vaughn as council vice-president between Marilyn Pfisterer and Robert Lutz. I'm also hearing that Mike McQuillen is challenging Lincoln Plowman for the Majority Leader's spot. Kent Smith, who was ousted by Vaughn as the Council's vice-president, is running unopposed for Majority Whip.

In other city news, the word on the street is that Mayor Ballard will name out-of-towner Frank Straub as the Public Safety Director this week. Straub has been in charge of the White Plains, New York police department until recently when he resigned over a dispute with the city council. Straub will reportedly receive a 2-year contract and be hiring his own chief for IMPD, who will also come from the outside. Current IMPD chief, Mike Spears, had vied for the Public Safety Director's job, along with interim director Mark Renner and veteran Captain Darryl Pierce. Race-baiting radio talk show host Amos Brown has already served notice to the Ballard administration that Straub's appointment will not be welcomed in the African-American community because he comes from a lily white, suburban city.

Even More Trouble For Brizzi

The IBJ and Indianapolis Star both have new reports this weekend on another Durham company in which Marion Co. Prosecutor Carl Brizzi owned stock. The company in question is Red Rock Pictures Holdings, a production company in which Durham and other associates acquired an interest in recent years and which later loaned millions to National Lampoon, Inc., another Durham-controlled company. The stock ownership was revealed on a federal financial disclosure form Brizzi filed earlier this year when he formed a campaign committee for a potential bid for the congressional seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Dan Burton (R). Brizzi did not respond to questions from the Star's Ted Evanoff and John Russell:

It is not known whether Brizzi currently holds shares in Red Rock. If he does, the disclosure would contradict a statement he made earlier this week, when he said he had no further financial ties to Durham, beyond those already reported in news stories.

Brizzi, who did not respond to several requests for comment Friday, has acknowledged he was appointed to the board of a Durham company recently raided by the FBI and bought stock in another Durham-related business whose records have been subpoenaed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Brizzi disclosed the Red Rock investment in a campaign filing when he was considering running for Congress in the district represented by Rep. Dan Burton. Brizzi pulled out of the race after Burton said he planned to run for a 15th term.

On the disclosure form, Brizzi listed the value of his stock in Red Rock at $1 to $1,000. Shares in Red Rock are nearly worthless, trading for less than a penny each. It was not clear when Brizzi bought the stock, how much he paid or how many shares he still holds.

Also unclear is how Brizzi came to buy stock in the little-known company. No analysts follow the stock or offer recommendations on it. The company has been struggling to make ends meet.

In the quarter that ended in May, the company lost $4.2 million and disclosed it has experienced losses from operations since its inception in 2004 that raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern.

The stock ownership in Red Rock becomes more troubling when you discover that Dan Laikin of National Lampoon, who recently pleaded guilty to federal charges that he manipulated National Lampoon's stock while serving as its CEO, is in the mix. Durham took the helm of National Lampoon after Laikin stepped down. The Star notes that Red Rock loaned at least $1 million to Laikin. National Lampoon bought a 14% stake in Red Rock and shared a chief financial officer, Lorraine Evanoff, for awhile. Evanoff stepped down after Laikin was charged with stock manipulation. Red Rock is currently run by television marketer Reno Rolle.

In previous interviews, Brizzi has claimed to reporters that Fair Finance and his stock ownership in CLST Holdings, another Durham-controlled company under investigation by the SEC, are the only business ties he had to Durham. Brizzi later hedged his answer in an interview with WTHR's Chris Proffitt when asked if Durham had personally loaned money to him. The new discovery of his stock in Red Rock further complicates his Durham problem. A pattern of Brizzi investments following Durham's is emerging. There have been Internet-posted rumors in the past that Red Rock was a "pump and dump" target by some investors. That's a form of stock fraud where stock investors buy a company's stock artificially cheap, generate excitement to pump its price and then dump it for a quick profit. Gee, didn't that happen with Brightpoint's stock a few years back?

The IBJ's Greg Andrews notes the growing problem Brizzi's ties to Durham are causing him. Andrews first broke the news that Brizzi had agreed to serve on Fair Finance's board of directors but thought better of that decision after Andrews began his news reporting of the company. Brizzi declined an interview for Andrews' story, but he did respond to questions by e-mail. In that correspondence, Brizzi told Andrews he thought he had sold the Red Rock stock that he had listed on his federal financial disclosure statement:

Brizzi declined IBJ’s requests for an interview about his investments. In an e-mail exchange, he initially said he did not think he owned stock in Red Rock. When presented with the disclosure, he said he thought he had sold it since the filing.

It’s not clear what led Brizzi to either Red Rock or CLST. In a letter to supporters he posted on his Facebook page Dec. 7, Brizzi said he began buying CLST in 2005 “after discussing the investment, as well as other companies, with friends and financial advisers as part of my overall investment planning.”

In that letter, Brizzi said, “To the best of my knowledge, there are no other businesses, stocks, or investments in which Durham and I both have an interest.” He stood by that statement after being presented with the Red Rock disclosure but didn’t respond to further inquiries.

The number of shares Brizzi owned in Red Rock wasn’t clear. Stock in the struggling business trades for less than a penny, leaving even large holdings nearly worthless. The filing listed the value of his stake at between zero and $1,000.

Andrews also picks up on the pattern of Brizzi buying stock in companies that Durham has become a major investor:

Details of Brizzi’s CLST investment also are sketchy. His purchases began the same year a Durham-led investment group began scarfing up shares of the firm. SEC filings don’t list Brizzi as part of that group.

In his letter to supporters, Brizzi said his current CLST stake is worth about $7,500, based on the stock price of about 10 cents a share. That indicates he owns about 75,000 shares. Purchasing that quantity in 2005 would have cost $24,000 at the stock’s low for the year and $340,500 at the stock’s high. Yet in his WXNT interview, Brizzi said he spent less than $10,000 to buy the shares.

When Brizzi acquired his stake, the company was known as CellStar Corp. and was in the cell-phone distribution business. It later sold off those operations to locally based Brightpoint Inc. and other firms and distributed $2.10 per share in cash dividends to stockholders.

CLST was in wind-down mode until about a year ago, when it suddenly began purchasing customer-finance receivables, including some from Fair Finance. Fair filings with Ohio securities regulators show that, at the time, Fair was strained for cash and was seeking money to repay purchasers of its investment certificates.

Brizzi’s disclosure statements dating to 2001 never have listed ownership of more than five individual stocks in a single year, though the federal filing from this year shows him owning more than a half dozen mutual funds, each with between $1,000 and $15,000 in assets.

Brizzi earns $125,000 a year as prosecutor and doesn’t have extensive assets. The federal filing shows he owes between $100,000 and $250,000 on a loan he took out to buy ownership interests in the local restaurant Harry & Izzy’s. The filing shows he still is paying off student loans.

Papers filed in connection with his divorce, which was finalized in February, showed he and his wife had three residences, but with first and second mortgages on all of them.•

The more reporters dig for information, the more troubling the questions about Brizzi's financial relationship with Durham become.

Brizzi's Tangled Web Of Conflicts

It looks like Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi's financial ties to Tim Durham aren't his only problem. Investigators might want to look at his financial relationship with real estate developer John Bales. According to Brizzi's financial disclosure statements, he owns an interest in Curtailing Investments, LLC valued between $50,000 and $100,000. According to the Articles of Organization for the Curtailing Investments filed with the Secretary of State on August 29, 2003, the organizer and registered agent of the company was John Bales. If Bales' name sounds familiar, it's because he was at the center of a controversial no-bid real estate contract Mayor Ballard's administration signed with another one of his companies, Venture Real Estate Services, LLC, to sell off the City's "surplus" park lands. More importantly, though, Brizzi engaged Bales to handle the leasing of office space for the prosecutor's office.

The county several years ago retained another Bales company, Meridian Asset Development, to find building space for county agencies to lease. Instead, the company wound up buying buildings and becoming the developer. That included about 72,000 square feet of space Brizzi's office leased at 251 E. Ohio Street. Meridian Asset Development later became a part of Bales' Venture Companies. I previously reported that one of that companies' divisions, Venture Value Fund I, identifies Brizzi as being a member of its Board of Managers. According to the company's website, Venture Value Fund I was "formed for the purpose of investing in distressed and undervalued real estate projects and properties due to the recent downturn in the housing market as well as the related tightening of credit for residential and commercial real estate projects." Brizzi's financial disclosure statements have not disclosed his role on Venture Value Fund's board of managers. Brizzi was one of six board of managers described in the private placement offering for the company, which indicated that the six board members represented Series A ownership units in the business and had invested an aggregate of $60,000 between them and were committed to investing an additional $90,000 in the Series B units. The offering proposed up to $30 million in Series B units sold in increments of $10,000 per unit. This is how a private placement referendum for Venture Value Fund I describes Brizzi:

Carl has served as the Marion County Prosecutor since November 2002. Using his comprehensive plan titled the “Brizzi Brief,” Carl focused the efforts of the Prosecutor’s office on prosecuting without apology the worst offenders and creating innovative crime prevention programs. Carl was a leader in changing Indiana law to allow law enforcement officers to use sting operations to catch those soliciting children over the Internet. Carl has aggressively prosecuted those who make, sell and use Methamphetamine. In 2005, Carl’s office achieved a 95% conviction rate in Meth cases. As former Chief Gang Prosecutor, Carl understands the danger associated with increased gang activity. For this reason, he fought to pass legislation that doubles the prison sentence for certain gang-related crimes.

In addition to tough prosecution, Carl also makes it a priority to engage in efforts that will help prevent crime. In October 2003, he kicked off the Mentor Network with Colts Coach Tony Dungy. Carl also created MY-KID (Mentoring Youth-Kids improving Directions), a mentoring program that pairs one volunteer with three middle school students and developed the EKG (Educating Kids about Gun Violence) program aimed at reducing youth gun violence.

Carl was a deputy prosecutor and the Chief Gang Prosecutor under former Marion County Prosecutor Scott Newman. He also served as Chief Investigative Council with the United States House of Representatives and was a founding partner in the law firm of Brizzi, Collignon & Dietrick.

Carl was raised in Indianapolis and attended Christ the King Elementary School, Bishop Chatard High School, and is a graduate of North Central High School. He received his B.A. in Political Science from Indiana University and earned his law degree from Valparaiso School of Law.

I raised the issue before and I'll raise it again. Should Carl Brizzi have a business relationship with the same guy who procured and developed government office space for the Prosecutor's Office? While Brizzi struggles to explain his tangled and conflicted relationship with Tim Durham, reporters might want to begin asking him questions about his financial relationship with John Bales.

Turley Sympathetic Towards Traffic Court Lawsuit

Fellow blogger and attorney Paul Ogden has found a sympathetic ear from respected constitutional law expert Jonathan Turley towards the class action lawsuit he recently filed against the Marion County Traffic Court. Turley writes of Ogden's suit:

There is an interesting story out of Indianapolis, Indiana where attorney Paul K. Ogden has sued the city over the imposition of fines against any citizen who dares to challenge a traffic ticket. Ogden says that the city is charging as much as $2500 if citizens do not just fork over the dough with a ticket.

The city has allegedly made its purpose clear that it wants to raise money by charging for justice. In a press release, the city announced a deal between Indianapolis and a private firm, T2 Systems:

“Using Six Sigma process improvement strategies, it is estimated that under this program the city may collect an additional $352,000 to $520,000 in parking citation revenue over the next 12 months,” the city press release stated. “If citations are not paid prior to their scheduled hearing, the city may request a fine of up to $2500 per citation. Upon receiving a judgment for an unpaid citation, individuals responsible could be subject to collections actions or having their vehicle registration suspended.”

He represents motorists like Toshinao Ishii who received a ticket for driving 63 MPH in a 55 zone in February. The ticket was only $150 but when he lost in court, the judge ordered him to pay $550. That is a pretty steep price for seeking judicial review. It is an outrageous practice that runs against the very foundation of the rule of law: the right to seek independent review of one’s case.

Brizzi Hedges On Whether He Got Loans From Durham

WTHR's Chris Proffitt pressed Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi on whether Tim Durham or any of his companies loaned money to him. Initially, Brizzi says he didn't received loans from any of Durham's companies; however, he began hedging his answer when Proffitt asked about any personal loans he may have received from Durham. Here's the exchange:

"Did Durham loan you any money for any of these investments? Anything? No money from Fair or any of these other companies? No personal loans or anything like that?" Eyewitness News asked Brizzi.

"Not that I can think of, no. To the best of my knowledge. I'd have to go back. I haven't explored any of that in terms of those stocks," Brizzi said.

That's not good. How could Brizzi not be able to definitively answer whether Durham had loaned him money? Certainly it is a matter that he would have needed to disclose on his statement of economic interest that he is required by law to file. Are there other matters he failed to disclose on those statements? And why has Brizzi made several amendments to his statements over the years? Reporters need to continue pressing Brizzi hard for answers to these questions. By the way, Proffitt's interview is an example of a tough media interview. Got that, Abdul "I'm a good friend of Carl's" Hakim Shabazz?

Star Editorial On Traffic Court Lawsuit Has A Vindictive Ring

An editorial in today's Star to a class action lawsuit filed by local attorney and fellow blogger Paul Ogden has more of a vindictive ring to it than a well-reasoned opinion piece one would expect from the state's largest newspaper. The editorial describes Ogden as a "gadfly." In case you were wondering, it's not a compliment to be called a gadfly. It's another way of describing someone you consider to be a pest. Begrudgingly, the editorial acknowledges that fines imposed by parties who fight and lose their case are excessive, but it's completely dismissive of the merits of Ogden's lawsuit. "Their lawsuit, captained by gadfly attorney Paul Ogden, accuses Judge Bill Young of discriminating against contesting defendants for the sake of crowd reduction," the editorial proclaims. That's a rather simplistic, over-generalization of the lawsuit. The editorial continues, "At least one constitutional law expert told The Star there's nothing 'unethical' about Young's posting of a sign warning ticket-holders of up to $500 in additional fines." Uh, the lawsuit isn't a case about legal ethics; it's a case about a defendant's constitutional rights to a free and open courtroom without excessive fines and punishments. The identity of the Star's "constitutional law expert" is not disclosed. It is astonishing indeed that a major newspaper would totally ignore the policy of closing the doors to a courtroom to everyone but defendants and their attorneys. It looks to me like this editorial was written for the purpose of showing the editors disdain for Ogden rather than discussing the merits of the lawsuit.