More rogues join Capitol gallery
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, however, had ruled the chamber for two decades before his January arrest to face federal corruption charges.
The one-two punch from the office of U.S. Attorney for the Southern District Preet Bharara changed the personnel of Albany's powerful "three men in a room" and shined new light on the state Capitol's penchant for closed-door negotiations, lax campaign finance laws and lack of genuine oversight.
After years of rebuffing questions about his legal practice, Silver was charged with taking bribes and kickbacks camouflaged as legal fees from two law firms, one specializing in lawsuits brought by asbestos contamination victims and the other working in the field of property tax appeals.
In return, the Democrat doled out legislative favors for a doctor and deep-pocketed real estate interests — notably the development firm Glenwood Management, the state's most generous political donor.
Skelos was charged with leaning on businesses to secure jobs and benefits for his 33-year-old son, whose eclectic resume included title insurance, medical malpractice insurance and — most outlandishly — consulting work for a company that sold stormwater-remediation technology and was allied with Glenwood Management.