Still to come in the GWB scandal: appeals, a possible restart to a legislative investigation, and a continuing inquiry by the SEC into Port Authority projects beneficial to Trenton. Watch video
NEWARK--The Bridgegate trial ended on Friday with guilty verdicts against two former Christie administration insiders. But the political scandal may be far from over.
New Jersey legislators are already looking to hold new hearings into Gov. Chris Christie's alleged involvement in the lane closures at the George Washington Bridge. Defense attorneys are readying motions for an appeal. The governor has a court date in Bergen County.
And perhaps most significantly, federal regulators apparently have yet to drop their inquiry into the use of Port Authority funds for projects that were politically advantageous to Trenton -- an inquiry sparked by the criminal investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey.
Former federal prosecutor Robert Mintz said the guilty verdicts against Bill Baroni, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Bridget Anne Kelly, who served as a deputy chief of staff to the governor, was a huge win for the U.S. Attorney's Office in what he called the most politically charged case federal prosecutors have brought in more than a decade.
"While this verdict presents a clear win for federal prosecutors, it leaves unanswered lingering questions about the full extent of the involvement of others and why prosecutors chose to limit the charges to only these two defendants," said Mintz, now a criminal defense attorney at McCarter & English. "One of the ironies of this case may be that while these convictions may resolve the charges brought against these defendants, in the end this case may be better remembered for those who were not charged than for those who were."
Bridgegate sentencing: How long?
Even as jurors were leaving the federal courthouse in Newark, Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Middlesex) and state Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen) were looking to resurrect the special legislative committee that had initially investigated the Bridgegate scandal.
What Christie knew
"With two of the highest ranking members of the Christie administration found guilty of criminal conduct, it is time to find out what the governor knew, when he knew it, and what actions he took in relation to the shutdown of the lanes on the George Washington Bridge," Wisniewski said in a statement.
"During the trial, numerous witnesses offered testimony under oath that directly contradicts Governor Christie's public statements," he said.
The scandal involved the unauthorized shutdown of several local access lanes at the world's busiest bridge in September 2013, to deliberately cause major traffic gridlock in Fort Lee. David Wildstein, a GOP operative at the Port Authority and admitted architect of the scheme, said it was all aimed at punishing the mayor of Fort Lee for his refusal to endorse the governor for re-election.
Kelly in her testimony said she believed the lane closures were part of a traffic study, and claimed she repeatedly told Christie about it.
The governor has said he had no knowledge of the plan. In a statement Friday, he added that no believable evidence was presented during the trial to contradict that fact.
"I will set the record straight in the coming days regarding the lies that were told by the media and in the courtroom," he said.
Christie, meanwhile, has a court date in Bergen County later this month to respond to a complaint by a former Teaneck firefighter and citizen activist, alleging the governor committed official misconduct and was involved in the George Washington Bridge lane closures.
A spokesman for Christie on Saturday said there have been no new developments in the matter, which the governor's office has characterized as a "dishonorable complaint filed by a known serial complainant and political activist."
Defense attorneys for Baroni and Kelly vow to return to court.
"This is not over, I assure you," pledged Michael Critchley, who represents Kelly and maintains her innocence.
He promised an appeal as well as a request for a new trial, based in part on the judge's instructions to the jury telling them not to consider whether the lane closures were punitive in nature.
At the same time, while he called Kelly a scapegoat for the actions of others much higher in the administration, he would not comment on what role the governor may have played.
"I'm a trial lawyer, not a politician," Critchley said.
Attorney Michael Baldassare, who represents Baroni, also promised an appeal, calling the case "a disgrace."
The attorney pointed out that prosecutors built their arguments to the jury on the premise the closures were meant to punish Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich, but said they then fought for instructions to the jury not to consider motive. He also charged that prosecutors were not brave enough to charge government higher-ups.
"One of the things the U.S. Attorney's Office should be ashamed of is where it decided to draw the line on who to charge and who not to charge," Baldassare told reporters. "They should have had belief in their own case to charge powerful people, and they did not."
Financing questions
Apparently still unresolved is a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry into the Port Authority's financing, which grew out of the Bridgegate investigation.
The SEC was looking into whether the agency improperly financed $1.8 billion in renovations to the Pulaski Skyway and other road projects at the behest of the Christie administration, according to subpoenas and bond filings.
A Port Authority spokesman on Saturday declined to comment on the matter, saying the only statements they have made on this issue have been in the agency's official bond statements issued prior to bond sales.
The most recent documents came in April of this year, ahead of a $475 million bond sale, which said "discussions have been initiated between the Port Authority and the staff of the SEC regarding a potential resolution of the investigation."
The Manhattan District Attorney had also been conducting a criminal investigation into the same financing issues.
Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Facebook: @TedSherman.reporter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.