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Thursday, November 5, 2009
Knox On Ethics Violation, Then & Now

Reporters peppered Tom Knox, a Philadelphia millionaire running for governor, today with several questions about why he paid $15,500 for a fine and legal costs last September to the Philadelphia Board of Ethics to settle an issue about radio ads his campaign aired when he ran for mayor in the 2007 Democratic primary election here.  That was less than convenient for Knox, who was pushing his plan to bring ethics to Harrisburg.

The ads, run under the name of a bogus organization, targeted then front-runner Michael Nutter for a land dispute involving a church in West Philadelphia.  The ads, which aired on black-oriented radio stations, suggested if was as if Nutter "wanted to disrespect the church, which is a step away from disrespecting God."

Knox today said he had accepted responsibility for the ads and dismissed the issue today as a "reporting error" on a campaign finance report.  “Quite frankly I didn’t know anything about it," Knox added. "If I had seen that ad, I never would have run it. It was a ridiculous ad. It was counterproductive and probably not true."

Last September, Knox released a statement saying he disagreed with the Board of Ethics on several of the allegations but felt it was in the best interest of the public to settle the issue.  The board found that the ads had been e-mailed to Josh Morrow, who ran Knox's campaign for mayor and now heads up his campaign for governor.  The board also found that Knox had signed a wire transfer for $13,215 to the West Philadelphia Democratic Club, which the same day sent the same amount to the radio stations for the ads.

Posted by Chris Brennan @ 1:44 PM  Permalink | 2 comments
Comments   
Posted 05:35 PM, 11/05/2009
fafafooey
Ethics is going to be brought to Harrisburg from a Philly Democrat??? BWAHAHAHAHAAHAHA! That's a good one.
Posted 05:51 AM, 11/06/2009
FJG JR
Another Philly democrat doesn't have a shot in Pennsylvania next time. New Jersey has proven my theory. Like it or not, Corbett's recent announcement Bonusgate is moving forward, will thrust him to the job.
2 comments
About Chris Brennan and Catherine Lucey
PhillyClout
Chris Brennan, a native Philadelphian and graduate of Temple University, joined the Daily News in 1999. He has written about SEPTA, the Philadelphia School District, the legalization of casino gambling, state government, the mayor, the governor, City Council and political campaigns.

Catherine Lucey joined the Daily News in 2002. Since then she has written about murderous drug gangs, political protesters and Harry Potter. For the past two years, she covered the 2007 mayoral election. Now that the battle is over, she has moved down to the City Hall bureau where she will report on the Nutter administration.

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Catherine Lucey
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