Outgoing Binghamton Mayor Matthew Ryan said he would not run for state Senate, but instead today announced he was filing a complaint with the Joint Commission on Public Ethics against the man he considered unseating, Deputy Senate Majority Leader Tom Libous.

In the letter, Ryan throws everything but the kitchen sink at Libous, charging that the longtime incumbent was able to use his political clout with to secure his son Matthew with a $150,000-a-year sweetheart job with a Westchester County law firm.

The claim was first made in an unrelated federal corruption trial of a Yonkers city councilwoman during the testimony of disbarred lawyer Anthony Mangone (the testimony can be found here).

The letter rehashes much of Mangone said in court:

“There can be no question that a full ethics investigation into this improper exertion of state legislative influence by Senator Libous is required, either by virtue of this complaint or on the Commission’s own initiative, in order to hold the state senator fully accountable to the standards of ethical conduct and public integrity state law requires of all members of the legislature.”

Libous initially refused to respond to the claims until after the trial ended. He did earlier this month, saying Mangone’s claims were simply untrue.

Libous is running in one of the safest Republican districts for a state senator and with Ryan out of the race, few options are left for Democrats.

Complaint Against State Senator Thomas W Libous

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