The Supreme Court on Thursday threw out the convictions of two government officials implicated in the 2013 Bridgegate scandal, in which then-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie‘s (R) allies schemed to create a traffic jam to punish a local mayor.
The justices said in their unanimous decision that while the scheme involved deception and corruption, it did not violate federal law.
“The question presented is whether the defendants committed property fraud,” Justice Elena Kagan wrote in the court’s opinion. “The evidence the jury heard no doubt shows wrongdoing — deception, corruption, abuse of power. But the federal fraud statutes at issue do not criminalize all such conduct. Under settled precedent, the officials could violate those laws only if an object of their dishonesty was to obtain the Port Authority’s money or property.” Continue reading.