Tea Partier to Plead Guilty to Felony Charges

Well, that would most surely be the headline if this criminal was a member of the Tea Party. Or a Republican. But since he's a formerly powerful New York Democrat, the New York Times figures it's not worth mentioning his party affiliation.

Former State comptroller Alan G. Hevesi was to plead guilty on Thursday morning to a felony count stemming from a state pension scandal, several people involved in the case said. He was in custody and awaiting arraignment in State Supreme Court in Manhattan.

Mr. Hevesi has been a subject of a lengthy investigation focusing on allegations that his friends, family and associates sold access to the state’s $125 billion pension fund, one of the world’s largest, to reward allies, pay back political favors and reap millions of dollars for themselves.

Mr. Hevesi was brought into the court by two marshals with his hands cuffed in front him beneath a draped trench coat. Once inside the lobby, he had his hands uncuffed before being taken to the fifth floor for his arraignment.

Mr. Hevesi’s plea would make him the highest-ranking state official convicted in the case. In 2006, he pleaded guilty to a separate felony after admitting that he had used state workers to chauffeur his ailing wife, but he avoided jail time in that case after he agreed to resign.

Who knows, if Hevesi plays his cards right he'll have a primetime show on CNN in no time.

H/T Spitfire Murphy.