A judge ruled Thursday that enough probable cause exists for a citizen's official misconduct complaint against Gov. Christie to move forward.
Enough probable cause exists for a citizen's official misconduct complaint against Gov. Chris Christie to move forward in connection with the governor's alleged failure to stop politically-motivated lane closures at the George Washington Bridge in 2013, a judge in Bergen County ruled Thursday.
The complaint by Bill Brennan, a retired Teaneck firefighter and citizen activist, alleges that Christie knew of the closures while they were happening and should have halted them. He alleges that the governor's inaction constitutes second-degree official misconduct, a charge punishable by five to 10 years in prison.
The lane closures caused significant traffic problems over a four-day span in Fort Lee and sparked a 16-month investigation that resulted in charges against two former members of Christie's inner circle, who are currently on trial in federal court in Newark. The trial is in its third week.
"I'm satisfied that there's probable cause to believe that an event of official misconduct was caused by Gov. Christie," Municipal Presiding Judge Roy McGeady said. "I'm going to issue the summons."
Judge Roy McGeady questions William Brennan during a probable cause hearingon Oct. 13, 2016. McGeady ruled that a complaint by Brennan charging Gov. Chris Christie with official misconduct could move forward. The governor's office vowed to "immediately appeal" the ruling. Christie's first appearance was scheduled for 9 a.m. on Oct. 24.
"This is a dishonorable complaint filed by a known serial complainant and political activist with a history of abusing the judicial system," Christie spokesman Brian Murray said. "The simple fact is the governor had no knowledge of the lane realignments either before they happened or while they were happening. This matter has already been thoroughly investigated by three separate independent investigations."
Brennan said he based the complaint on testimony from David Wildstein, a Christie appointee at the Port Authority who pleaded guilty to his role in the scandal. Wildstein is the government's key witness in its conspiracy and fraud case against William Baroni, who served as deputy executive director of the Port Authority, and Bridget Anne Kelly, who was the governor's deputy chief of staff.
The latest on the Bridgegate trial
Though Christie was never charged in connection with the lane closures, the scandal is seen as contributing to his failed bid for the Republican nomination for President.
Wildstein has said in his testimony that he discussed the plot with multiple members of Christie's senior staff before and during the lane closures, which he said was political retribution against Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich for not endorsing the governor in his reelection campaign.
Wildstein also testified that Christie was told about the gridlock at a 9/11 memorial service, as the lanes remained closed in Fort Lee. Brennan says Christie had a legal obligation to stop the lane closures at that point.
McGeady asked Brennan why he filed in Bergen County, not Mercer County, where the governor's office is located. Brennan said that it was because the lane closures took place in Fort Lee, which McGeady said was a satisfactory answer.
"It's been dumped in this court's lap so this court is going to deal with it," McGeady said.
Craig Carpenito, an attorney at the law firm Alston & Bird who appeared on behalf of the governor, told McGeady that Brennan's claim was "intentionally misleading" and that the governor's knowledge of the lane closures had already been thoroughly investigated.
The audience in McGeady's courtroom, mostly there for minor criminal violations, applauded after he ruled.
"Anything short of probable cause today would have been official misconduct on the part of the judge," said Brennan, a graduate of the Seton Hall University School of Law. "The standard is low, the evidence is heavy."
McGeady said the case would now go to the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office, which would decide whether to bring an indictment against Christie. The prosecutor, Gurbir S. Grewal, a Christie appointee, would likely recuse himself, McGeady said.
The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office declined to comment.
In New Jersey's criminal code, a charge of official misconduct pertains mostly to public officials.
"You're someone who either exercised their official function, knowing that it's unauthorized," explained James Pomaco, a former prosecutor in Passaic County who's now a criminal defense attorney. "Or you're someone who knowingly 'refrained from performing a duty which is imposed upon him by law or is clearly inherent in the nature of his office'."
Pomaco said that "from a prima facie standpoint, there's enough for a charge" of official misconduct based on Wildstein's testimony that Christie was informed of the lane closures as they were occurring on Sept. 11, 2013.
At the start of the Bridgegate scandal, some experts argued that state was better suited to prosecute the case overall because violations of state law were more apparent.
Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Middlesex), who along with state Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen), co-chaired the legislative committee that looked into Bridgegate, said "it was a very interesting development, certainly not something that I expected today."
"It is a black eye for the state of New Jersey to have a judge find probable cause that the governor's actions were malfeasance in office," Wisniewski said. "Look, the testimony of David Wildstein corroborated a lot of the suspicions that the committee had during our process, that lot of people have statewide. It remains to be seen exactly what happens now that a finding of probable cause has been reached, because we know that the prosecutor has a discretion to act on that. We don't know exactly what they'll do."
Weinberg said the Bridgegate panel may have to reconvene.
"I believe that there are people who came before the joint committee under oath and were not exactly forthcoming, which is the kindest way I can describe. There were texts apparently that they never told us about, there were meetings that they never offered," she said.
Brennan unsuccessfully sued the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office in 2014 in an effort to reveal the names of bidders at an auction for baseball memorabilia seized in a drug arrest. He has filed numerous suits against public officials in Bergen County over the years.
Staff Writers Craig McCarthy, Claude Brodesser-Akner and Samantha Marcus contributed to this story.
Myles Ma may be reached at mma@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MylesMaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.