Lawyer Sues State For ‘Scare Tactics’
by CTNewsjunkie Staff | Jan 12, 2012 12:26pm
(6) Comments | Commenting has expired
Posted to: Labor, Legal
The lawyer representing 17 of the 44 state employees accused of fraud for obtaining food stamp benefits, sued the state Thursday saying the governor’s administration unconstitutionally forbid Department of Social Services workers from speaking to him.
In a press release, Rich Rochlin said he filed the suit on behalf of Lisa Prout, one of the employees being investigated.
“We were compelled to file suit when last week, Brenda Parrella, an attorney for DSS, sent the attached memorandum to all DSS employees wherein she ordered them not to speak to me about this investigation,” he said.
Rochlin said the memo incorrectly alleges that contact with him violates professional conduct rules. That flies in the face of decades of legal precedent, he said. It also contradicts Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s promise to run a transparent state government, he said.
“The governor’s administration, faced with continued criticism about the way DSS handled the D-SNAP program, has resorted to issuing unconstitutional scare tactics to keep us from uncovering the truth,” he said. “We will not be intimidated and will ask a court to put an end to this star chamber of secrecy.”
Susan Kinsman, the Attorney General George Jepsen’s spokeswoman, said his office has not received the complaint yet but will review it when they do.
Rochlin said he will be holding a 2 p.m. press conference at his East Berlin office to discuss the matter.
Tags: hospital, fraud, food stamps, Rich Rochlin, Lisa Prout
(6) Comments
posted by: Disgruntled | January 12, 2012 3:16pm
“30 more state workers implicated in scandal”
Rochlin is gonna be a busy boy. Some are retiring,rather than face charges? Nice perk. Nixon did sort of the same thing back in the day. Why is it the rest of us get locked up for fraud but “public servants” get to retire?
Fire them all,including the idiots who passed out the candy for DSnap!!
posted by: lkulmann | January 12, 2012 5:40pm
If I were a fly on the wall at DSS ‘policy’ Department it would sound something like this…“what do you mean no professional conduct policy?!! Just make one up about not talkin’ to lawyers, ya kno, da kind like that Rochlin guy…makes copies an give everyone a professional conduct bonus wit their pay this week…uh I dunno trow them a bone, say about a grand each…that’ll keep the peace for a month or two. Hey Meatball! Write another grant for a few million…tell em we gotta fix the lights or somethin”
posted by: Brian Parker | January 12, 2012 7:47pm
I like his mohawk.
Malloy said they will be harshly dealt with. And they will be.
posted by: NOW What? | January 16, 2012 5:36am
Having absolutely *no* involvement - neither directly nor indirectly - with this fiasco I do feel compelled to say the following:
1) I have known Lisa Prout personally and I can assure all that she ABSOLUTELY would *never* have deliberately even APPLIED for money that she knew she didn’t actually qualify for, let alone knowingly *accept* such funds under such conditions (meaning if she had known that she didn’t qualify for it in the first place). She’s a fine person and as far as I can tell has actually been a very good employee.
2) DSS and the State in general was TOTALLY unprepared for those two storms and administration of the D-SNAP program in a manner that would’ve been more strict than its sponsor - the federal government - requires.
3) Governor Malloy has *completely* mishandled this situation, right from the very beginning. There may very well have been some employees who actually engaged in fraud of some sort, but given his bungling of the situation we may never know. Rochlin seems to be doing a pretty good job of telling the Malloy administration to either do things correctly and get your facts straight, or shut up until you do… and he’s right.
posted by: lkulmann | January 16, 2012 3:24pm
@NOW What…I definitely agree with you on DSS and the State being unprepared for the two storms and the handling of DSnap etc…live and learn and be better prepared for the next time. It’s all still under investigation as it should be. Now the State doesn’t seem to be prepared to handle Medicaid applications in a timely manner hence a Class Action Lawsuit. Medicaid has been around for awhile…so what gives? Don’t get me wrong, ‘they’ are good people and of good character I’m sure…that Malloy administration is just messing up EVERYTHING! If we get a better Governor, DSS would run smoothly I’m sure…makes good sense to me