Ethics Board probe into Councilwoman Miller enters its third month

It’s been two month since officials with the Philadelphia Board of Ethics raided Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller’s office and there’s no indication of when the investigation will end.  

The Board is looking into whether city workers used city equipment to print and distribute campaign related materials. The Ethics Board also issued a subpoena for materials within Council President Anna Verna’s office.

The Ethics Board launched its investigation after it received complaints that Miller’s endorsement of Verna Tyner was sent out on Council letterhead. The complaints came from representatives of two Eighth District candidates.

 

When will it end?

As for when the Ethics Board will reach its conclusion is anybody’s guess. Shane Creamer, the Board’s Executive Director, said the length of investigations vary.

“The last settlement agreement we reached was with Karen Brown and it took us less than a week from start to finish. The one before that was Renee Tartaglione and that took us 14 months to investigate,” he said.

Brown, the Republican nominee for mayor, was investigated after she failed to file a campaign finance report for her political committee “Friends of Karen Brown” with the City Commissioner’s Office.

Tartaglione, a former Deputy City Commissioner, was investigated for participating in political campaigns between 2007 and 2009. The City’s Charter bars city employees from politicking.

Creamer would not provide any details about the case.

Michael Moore, Councilwoman Miller’s spokesperson, would not comment for this story.

In a statement released following the raid, Miller’s attorney Charles Gibbs said his client is “cooperative and responding to their request.”

Miller, a four-term incumbent, announced in February that she was not seeking a fifth term.

Cindy Bass, an aide with U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah, won the Democratic Primary and will likely replace Miller following November’s General Election.