David Samson (New Jersey)

David Samson
Attorney General of New Jersey
In office January 15, 2002 – February 15, 2003
Governor	Jim McGreevey
Preceded by	John Farmer
Succeeded by	Peter Harvey
Personal details
Born	(1939-08-14) August 14, 1939 Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Alma mater	Rutgers University, New Brunswick University of Pennsylvania

David Samson (born August 14, 1939) is an American lawyer who served as New Jersey Attorney General from 2002 to 2003. He served as the Chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey from 2011 until his resignation on March 28, 2014 in the aftermath of the Fort Lee lane closure scandal.^[1][2] Samson is a partner and founding member of the law firm Wolff & Samson.^[3] from which he resigned in April 2015.^[4][5]

Biography

Samson graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers University in 1961 and a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1965. Early in his career, he served a judicial clerkship with Associate Justice Nathan L. Jacobs of the New Jersey Supreme Court.^[6]

During 2002-2003, Samson served as New Jersey Attorney General, the chief law enforcement officer for New Jersey. In this role, he supervised the statewide Divisions of Criminal Justice, New Jersey State Police, Civil Rights, Consumer Affairs and Gaming Enforcement, as well as the Division of Law, which represents all executive departments in New Jersey State government. As Chairman of the New Jersey Domestic Security Preparedness Task Force, he worked hand-in-hand with federal agencies in organizing and directing counter-terrorism efforts throughout the New Jersey-New York area.

In 2009, Samson was counsel to the gubernatorial election campaign of Chris Christie and thereafter served as the Chairman of Christie's Transition Committee. Samson has also acted as a court-appointed labor union trustee, a civil litigation discovery master and as a federal monitor pursuant to a United States Department of Justice deferred prosecution agreement.^[3]

Among his public positions, Samson was appointed by Governor James Florio as a member of the Governor’s Commission on Health Care Costs and by Governor Thomas Kean as the Chairman of the Governor’s Task Force on the Laws Governing the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. He also served from 1982-1990 as General Counsel to the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.

Samson was appointed by the Supreme Court of New Jersey to serve on its Ethics Committee and was a member of the New Jersey Supreme Court Committee on Reporting of Court Decisions. He was also the legal consultant to the Advisory Committee to the Attorney General on Governmental Immunity. In addition, Samson served on the New Jersey Bar Association Committee on Judicial and Prosecutorial Appointments.

Samson was nominated to the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey by Governor Chris Christie on September 30, 2010. He was confirmed by the New Jersey Senate on January 25, 2011 and was elected as the agency’s Chairman on February 3, 2011.

Following the death of United States Senator Frank Lautenberg on June 3, 2013, there was speculation that Gov. Christie would appoint Samson to fill the vacant seat in the United States Senate.^[7] Instead, Christie picked Samson's former law partner, New Jersey Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa.

Controversies

Fort Lee lane closure scandal

In January 2014, it was revealed in subpoenaed e-mails that Samson had tried to retaliate against Port Authority Executive Director Patrick J. Foye, who allegedly leaked his own September 13, 2013, e-mail criticizing the closure of two of three local toll lanes to the George Washington Bridge without following regular Port Authority protocols and without notifying Foye, and supported David Wildstein, who resigned from the Port Authority in December, 2013, for his role in closing those dedicated toll lanes for an entrance in Fort Lee, New Jersey.^[8] This fueled speculation that Samson was involved in the scandal known as Bridgegate. Official e-mails sent from Samson to other Port Authority officials sharply criticized Foye's order to re-open the two closed toll lanes for the George Washington Bridge, accusing the latter of "stirring up trouble."^[9] Samson hired Covington & Burling and Genova Burns Giantomasi Webster as legal representation.^[10]

On February 19, 2014 Samson apologized on behalf of the commissioners "for inconvenience caused to our travelers" without directly stating that it was due to plans by some individuals to cause traffic jams with the toll lane closings at the bridge,^[11] and without acknowledging the detrimental effects on the borough of Fort Lee and its public services, mayor, and officials^[12] The editorial board of The Star-Ledger, a New Jersey newspaper with the largest circulation in the state, assessed Samson's apology as "too little, too late", noted a list of his failures and conflicts of interests, and called for him to resign.^[13] According to records released by subpoena, Samson is said to have been intimately involved with day-to-day operations at the Port Authority.^[14]

Samson's resignation was announced by Christie at a press conference on March 28, 2014. Samson said in a statement: “Over the past months, I have shared with the Governor my desire to conclude my service to the PANYNJ. The timing is now right, and I am confident that the Governor will put new leadership in place to address the many challenges ahead.”^[1]

Allegations of conflict of interest

Several dealings between Wolff and Samson and the Port Authority have come under media scrutiny for possible conflict of interest^{[15][16][17][18]}

A report by the The Star-Ledger found Samson voted at the Port Authority to award multi-million dollar contracts to Railroad Construction Company Inc, a company whose owner is represented by Samson's law firm.^[19][20] In March 2014, The New York Times reported in a front page article that a "comprehensive examination" had shown the extent to which clients of Samson's law firm had profited from dealings with the Port Authority during Samson's term as chairman. The Times reported that "Samson and his law firm benefited financially," and that Christie "benefited politically." ^[18]

On February 25, 2013, Patrick Foye, the Executive Director of the Port Authority, said he does not believe Chairman Samson has moral authority to run the Port Authority.^[19]

The New Jersey Working Families Alliance claimed that Samson misused his authority as chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, alleging that Samson traded his public position to benefit the private clients of his law firm, and filed an ethics complaint with the New Jersey State Ethics Commission.^[21][22]

The Bergen County freeholders (county legislature), which has no oversight over the PA, called for the resignation of both Chairman Samson (since his political activity allegedly conflicted with his actions regarding the aftermath of the lane closures and other PA issues) and the other five New Jersey appointed commissioners (based on their failure to exercise oversight in the aftermath of the Bridgegate controversy).^[23] Bergen County is the most populous New Jersey county^[24][25] and includes Fort Lee and surrounding communities that were impacted by the lane closures.

Calls for Samson's resignation and/or removal came from The Star-Ledger,^[13] The Record (twice),^[26][27] The New York Times,^[28] Daily News (New York),^[29] and the Bergen County Board of Chosen Freeholders.^[23]

In response to these matters, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie stated that he "strongly, firmly" stands behind Samson as chairman of the Port Authority.^[30]

On March 7, 2014, federal prosecutors from the office of United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, subpoenaed the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for documents related to Samson's private business interests,^[31] but rescinded the request on March 10, 2014, due to an overlapping investigation into the toll lane closures by Paul J. Fishman, United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey.^[32]

On March 28, 2014, Christie announced Samson's resignation from the Port Authority, "effective immediately".^[1][2]

According to a report by Main Justice the Public Corruption Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s office in the Southern District of New York opened an investigation into Samson’s conduct as Port Authority chairman.^[33]

In December 2014 Samson and his law firm sued the New Jersey State Ethics Commission in U.S. District Court, claiming it does not have the authority to investigate Port Authority commissioners.^[34] The suit was dropped on December 24, 2014.^[35]

In January 2015, federal prosecutors subpoenaed records related to Samson's personal travel, and his relationship with Newark Liberty International Airport's largest carrier, United Airlines, as part of a probe into a flight route initiated by United while Samson was chairman of the transportation agency that operates the region's airports. The route provided non-stop service between Newark and Columbia Metropolitan Airport in South Carolina, located about 50 miles from a home where Samson often spent weekends. United halted the non-stop route on April 1, 2014, three days after Samson resigned from the position. Samson referred to the twice-a-week route — with a flight leaving Newark on Thursday evenings and another returning on Monday mornings — as “the chairman’s flight.”^[36][37] The PANYNJ is cooperating with the investigation.^[38][39]

See also

• Governorship of Chris Christie

References

External links

• Port Authority of NY and NJ capsule bio

Legal offices
Preceded by John Farmer	Attorney General of New Jersey 2002–2003	Succeeded by Peter Harvey
Political offices
Preceded by Anthony Coscia	Chairperson of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey 2011–2014	Vacant

Attorneys General of New Jersey (Since 1947 State Constitution) Parsons Richman Furman Sills Kugler Hyland Degnan Zazzali Kimmelman Edwards Perretti Del Tufo Poritz Verniero Farmer Samson Harvey Farber Rabner Milgram Dow Chiesa