Tag search result

The N.C. Democratic Party made a $9,135 transfer on March 19 to its secretive legal fund as part of a partial financial settlement with a former staffer who alleged he was sexually harassed, new documents indicate.

John Wallace, the party's attorney, confirms that the legal defense fund -- never acknowledged until the controversy exploded at Democratic headquarters in April-- is the source of the payment, according to a letter sent Friday to the state Board of Elections.

Answering a complaint filed by the conservative Civitas Institute about the financial settlement, Wallace wrote that the party "made a transfer to the NCDP Legal Fund from which the primary obligation arising from the settlement was paid." Wallace further writes that two other transfers were made from the party's state account to cover a "related tax obligation" and "certain expenses associated with benefit obligations."

The TV satellite trucks are no longer stationary outside the N.C. Democratic Party headquarters on Hillsborough Street. But many questions surrounding the sexual harassment claims that crippled the party still remain unanswered. Here's a few storylines left in my notebook:

1. The money. The cost of the settlement with the former Democratic Party staffer who alleged sexual harassment and the source of the money is still unknown. But here's a more interesting point that went underreported: At the press conference, when I asked Chairman David Parker the source of the payout he said this: "I do not know. I leave that up the lawyer." So attorney John Wallace is authorized to spend party money and select its source as he sees fit?