Unindicted But Tainted

While Mayor de Blasio is undoubtedly relieved that he hasn’t had to appear in a Federal courthouse—at least not yet—to explain his dealings with some big donors who have run afoul of the law, any day those donors have appeared on the witness stand has not been a good one for him.

Last fall his reputation took a pounding over several days that Jona Rechnitz testified as a witness in the case in the Foley Square courthouse involving an alleged bribery scheme in which a hedge-fund operator paid ex-Correction Officers Benevolent Association President Norman Seabrook $60,000 in return for $20 million in union investments. In the course of discussing that alleged wrongdoing, Mr. Rechnitz also detailed large contributions he and a partner made to Mr. de Blasio’s campaign and causes he championed in return for favors he said they received because of City Hall influence.