Walter Monegan
...On Oct. 10, an investigative report written by Branchflower and released by a bipartisan group of state lawmakers concluded that Palin abused her authority and broke state ethics laws by sanctioning a campaign to pressure subordinates to fire her former brother-in-law, state trooper Mike Wooten.
Although Palin welcomed the probe in July, she turned against it after John McCain picked her in late August to be his running mate. The McCain-Palin campaign dispatched a team of operatives to Alaska in an effort to block or discredit the Branchflower investigation.
On Sept. 2, just a day before she accepted the GOP nomination, Palin took the unusual step of filing an ethics complaint against herself. Her attorney, Thomas Van Flein, said the probe sanctioned by the Legislative Council was a partisan witch-hunt led by Obama supporters, despite the fact that it was approved by a majority of Republican lawmakers. The state personnel board, Palin and her attorneys said is the appropriate governing body to conduct a fair and nonpartisan investigation into Palin for possible ethics violations.
Since the 263-page Branchflower report has been released, Palin has misrepresented the report’s findings....
Governor Sarah Palin signs House Bill 109 into law at the Alaska Public Offices Commission in Anchorage. The legislation improves Alaska’s ethics and disclosure laws.
Alaska's Former Top Cop Files Complaint Against Palin (click here)
By Jason Leopold
The Public Record
Monday, October 13, 2008
Walt Monegan, Alaska’s former public safety commissioner fired by Gov. Sarah Palin in July due, in part, to his refusal to fire a state trooper who was married to Palin’s sister, filed a complaint Monday with the state’s personnel board calling for a hearing to “address reputational harm” caused by Palin.
In a six-page complaint, Monegan’s attorney Jeffrey Feldman said Palin’s series “inconsistent and changing explanations” for firing Monegan has damaged his reputation. At first she said she wanted to take the department that Monegan headed in a "different direction." In recent weeks, Palin and campaign officials said Monegan was fired for insubordination....
