Gadfly Wants Prosecutors, AG To Recuse Themselves From Christie Ethics Case

The man who filed a criminal complaint against Governor Chris Christie is asking that all county prosecutors and Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino be disqualified from handling the case and a special prosecutor be appointed.

The case exists because Bergen County gadfly William Brennan filed a criminal ethics complaint against the governor Sept. 28 related to the George Washington Bridge lane-closure scandal. Brennan’s complaint stems from testimony in the Bridgegate trial. Judge Roy F. McGready found probable cause to investigate the complaint. Christie was charged with official misconduct.

RELATED: Gadfly Files Misconduct Complaint Against Governor Christie

Christie appoints county prosecutors and the attorney general with the State Senate’s approval. Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal and Porrino have already recused themselves from the case.

“They do not do such a good job articulating how their subordinates are not affected by that conflict, but insist that a special prosecutor is unwarranted,” William Brennan said in an email.

Rebecca M. Ricigliano, first assistant attorney general, and John L. Higgins III, acting first assistant prosecutor, submitted a joint letter dated Nov. 4 to Judge Bonnie J. Mizdol asking her to deny Brennan’s request as “moot” and is “unsupported by law or fact.”

RELATED: Chris Christie To Appear In Court For 'Bridgegate' Criminal Summons

Christie will appear in state Superior Court in Hackensack, Bergen County, N.J., at 1:30 p.m. in room 114 on Nov. 23, according to a document published by NBC4 New York.

Christie knew that his associates were involved in a plan to shut down lanes leading to the George Washington Bridge, according to a New York Times account of the trial, and that the closings were intended to punish the Fort Lee mayor for declining to support his 2013 re-election bid.

RELATED: Bridgegate Verdict: 2 Ex-Chris Christie Aides Found Guilty in Criminal Trial

Two former aides, Bridget Anne Kelly, the governor’s former deputy chief of staff, and Bill Baroni, the top Christie executive appointee at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, were found guilty of all charges connected to the scandal.

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Governor Chris Christie — Patch file photo