State Ethics Commission v. Antonetti

• Decision Date: 11 September 2001
• Docket Number: No. 111,111
• Citation: State Ethics Commission v. Antonetti, 365 Md. 428, 780 A.2d 1154 (Md. 2001)
• Parties: STATE ETHICS COMMISSION v. Robert J. ANTONETTI, Sr.
• Court: Maryland Court of Appeals

780 A.2d 1154

365 Md. 428

STATE ETHICS COMMISSION v. Robert J. ANTONETTI, Sr.

No. 111, Sept. Term, 2000.

Court of Appeals of Maryland.

September 11, 2001.

Randolph Stuart Sergent, Asst. Atty. Gen. (J. Joseph Curran, Jr., Atty. Gen., on brief), Baltimore, for petitioner.

William C. Brennan, Jr. (Brent M. Ahalt of Knight, Manzi, Nussbaum & LaPlaca, P.A., on brief), Upper Marlboro, for respondent.

Anne L. Blumenberg, Alan T.L. Sun, Community Law Center, Inc., Baltimore, on brief of Amicus Curiae in support of the respondents. Argued before BELL, C.J., and ELDRIDGE, RAKER, WILNER, CATHELL, HARRELL, and BATTAGLIA, JJ.

BATTAGLIA, Judge.

In the appeal now before us, we must consider whether Robert J. Antonetti, Sr., who served as the Administrator for the Prince George's County Board of Supervisors of Elections violated the provisions of the Public Ethics Law, Md.Code Ann., State Gov't § 15-101 et seq. (1984, 1995 Repl.Vol.),¹ by recruiting, hiring, promoting and supervising his wife and minor children in temporary employment positions spanning a six year period with the Petitioner, the Prince George's County Board of Supervisors of Elections.

I. Facts

The Respondent, Robert J. Antonetti, Sr. ("Antonetti"), served as the Administrator for the Prince George's County Board of Supervisors of Elections ("the Board") for thirty years, starting on January 5, 1970. The duties of the Elections Administrator in Prince George's County have been defined formally in the county's "Position Description Performance Standards" as:

Chief Executive Officer of and principal advisor to the Board of Supervisors of Elections which regulates all Federal, State and County elections. The Elections Administrator's primary responsibility is one of management, planning, developing and administering the fiscal functions and general activities of the office of the Board of Supervisors of Elections combining a knowledge of election technology and law with administrative skills. Work is performed with independent judgment within the established policies of the Board and dictates of Federal, State and County law....An employee in this class counsels and evaluates the work of all employees, elects, assigns and directs the training programs for Board employees including technical, clerical and temporary personnel.²

In Antonetti's eighteenth year as Elections Administrator, members of his family, including his wife and children, began to work in a number of positions for the Board. Antonetti's wife, Mary Catherine Antonetti, worked for the Board in 1988, 1992 and 1994 as an election clerk. Antonetti signed the supplemental pay authorization form permitting Mrs. Antonetti to become a temporary employee of the Board and establishing her rate of pay.³ In 1994, Antonetti executed a subsequent form authorizing a pay increase for his wife. Mrs. Antonetti was paid $7.00 per hour in 1988 for a total of $234.50, $7.00 per hour in 1990 for a total of $514.50, and $10.00 per hour in 1994 for a total of $530.00.

Antonetti's eldest son, Robert J. Antonetti, Jr. ("Robert, Jr.") began working at eleven years of age for the Board in 1988 as a book runner, carrying books, supplies, and other election materials to election judges. Antonetti signed a supplemental pay authorization for Robert, Jr. in 1988 at an hourly pay rate of $6.25. In 1990, Antonetti executed another supplemental pay authorization increasing Robert, Jr.'s salary to $7.00 per hour. As a book runner, Robert, Jr. earned $84.38 in 1988 and $105.00 in 1990.

In 1992 when Robert, Jr. was sixteen, he became a Voting Machine Technician. At that time, there were no other individuals under the age of eighteen who were employed as voting machine technicians with the Board. In this capacity, Robert, Jr. programmed, tested and performed maintenance on the Prince George's County voting machines. For this, Antonetti signed a supplemental pay authorization form enabling his son's employment as Voting Machine Technician I at $8.00 per hour. In 1992, Robert, Jr. earned a total of $2,048.50 for his work in this position. In 1993, Antonetti executed a supplemental pay authorization which promoted Robert, Jr. to the position of Voting Machine Technician II, for which Robert, Jr. was paid $10.00 per hour.⁴ Robert, Jr. earned $1,266.00 in this position in 1993, and $4,275.00 in 1994. Robert, Jr. continued his employment with the Board as a Voting Machine Technician II in 1995 and 1996.

In 1988, Antonetti's second son, John Paul Antonetti ("John"), began his employment with the Board at the age of nine as a book runner, just like his brother, Robert, Jr. He continued working in this position during the 1990, 1992, and 1994 elections. Antonetti executed a supplemental pay authorization form for John in 1988 establishing an hourly pay rate of $6.25. On two subsequent occasions, Antonetti executed additional supplemental pay authorization forms, increasing John's salary to $7.00 per hour in 1990 and $10.00 per hour in 1992 for the same tasks he performed as a nine year-old. John earned a total of $84.38 in 1988, $105.00 in 1990, $159.50 in 1992, and $150.00 in 1994.

Antonetti's youngest son, Edward James Antonetti ("Edward") began working as a book runner for the Board in 1992 when he was eleven and continued to do so in 1994. Antonetti executed a supplemental pay authorization for Edward in 1992, setting his pay rate at $10.00 per hour. Edward earned a total of $150.00 in 1992, and $140.00 in 1994.

In 1990, Antonetti's daughter, Theresa Caroline Antonetti ("Theresa") began working for the Board at the age of fifteen as summer help in the Board office. She earned a total of $241.50 at a pay rate of $7.00 per hour in 1990, $1,827.00 in 1992 and $1,998.50 in 1994. Antonetti executed the supplemental pay authorization forms for Theresa's employment.

Antonetti signed all of the time sheets for his wife and offspring as their supervisor. For the period of 1988 through 1994, Antonetti's family members earned a total of $13,913.76 as employees of the Board.

On September 25, 1995, the State Ethics Commission ("the Commission") issued a complaint against Antonetti, stating that in his capacity as Administrator for the Board of Supervisors of Elections of Prince George's County, Antonetti was "a public official of the State subject to the conflict of interest and the financial disclosure provisions of the Ethics Law." The complaint alleged Antonetti had violated the Public Ethics Law in that he had:

1. Participated in his official capacity in the hiring of his wife and children for part time and temporary positions with the Board of Supervisors of Elections of Prince George's County in violation of Sections 3-101(a) and 3-104 of the Ethics Law; and

2. Failed to timely disclose the employment of his wife and dependent children on his annual financial disclosure statements for calendar years 1988 through 1994 in violation of Section 4-103 of the Ethics Law.⁵

The alleged violations covered the period of time from 1988 through 1994 and involved Antonetti's recruitment of his family members to fill positions with the Board, enabling their employment by signing the supplemental pay authorization forms, supervising them by authorizing payment for their work, promoting Robert, Jr. to Voting Technician II, a position for which he had not qualified, increasing their salaries without requiring additional work performance and for failing to disclose the employment activities of his family members on his annual financial disclosure statements as required by Subtitle 6 of the Ethics Law.

A hearing was held before the Commission on January 21, 1997 at which time the Commission made the following findings of fact:

1. Respondent is now and was at the times relevant to this complaint employed as Elections Administrator for the Prince George's County Board of Supervisors of Elections (the Board). In this capacity he serves as the Chief Executive Officer and principal advisor to the Board in regulation and administration of all Federal, State and County elections in the County. The position is one of management, planning, developing and administering the fiscal and general activities of the agency, and entails performance of duties with independent judgment within the established policies of the Board and Federal, State and County law. The position involves substantial responsibilities relating to direction and supervision of Board employees as required to carry out elections in the County.

2. Though responsibility for final budget development is vested in the Board and ultimately the County government, we find that Respondent plays a key advisory role in budget development, including recommending numbers and types of employees and rates of pay. The Board relies substantially on the initial budget proposed by Respondent, seldom changing pay rates or numbers of positions. Moreover, it is clear from the record that Respondent's key operational responsibilities for managing the Board's program and activities involve substantial judgment and discretion in filling positions authorized by the Board in its budget development process. Witnesses testified that the Board was "kept aware" of persons hired by Respondent, was "notified" of hirings, or was given a list of recommendations. It is clear to us from the record that wherever the technical legal hiring authority lay, this is a citizen board that relies substantially on the efforts and recommendations of its full-time professional staff administrator to make hiring decisions, and that he in fact functions in this capacity.

3. During the period of time relevant to this complaint (1988 to 1994), Respondent in his official capacity as Elections Administrator took many actions involving his spouse Mary Antonetti and his four children (Robert, Jr., Teresa [sic], Edward, and John), all of whom were, at most times involved in this matter, minor children. These actions involved...