Editorial - Elected Office Should Not Be A Get Out Of Jail Free Card

The guilty verdict has been cast. Another elected official, Congressman Christopher Collins (NY 27th CD), has violated his oath of office and added a nail in the coffin of integrity and the public’s trust in elected officials. 

Collins has been convicted of insider trading and lying to the FBI.

Prosecutors have asked for a five year jail sentence for Collins. Letters of support from elected officials are going into the court record asking for leniency for the man who served alongside them in the U.S. Congress. State of Politics reporter Nick Reisman reported on January 8th that  Long Island Congressman Peter King, 2nd CD, wrote  to Judge Broderick “While I am in no way attempting to minimize the serious error in judgment to which Chris Collins has admitted, I would respectfully request that when imposing sentence Your Honor take into account his many positive contributions in public life and the genuine respect he has earned and the high regard in which he is held by those who have worked with him and know him well”. 

It is an honor to serve as an elected official. The public has every right to expect its elected officials behavior to be in accordance with laws.  Collins was elected to office in 2013 and served until he resigned September 30, 2019. He was charged in August of 2018 and continued his run for congress calling the charges that he has pleaded guilty to “meritless”.  As a congressman his responsibility was to legislate, make laws for Americans. Instead he violated the laws and lied to the FBI when questioned about his activity, lied to the public about his actions and ran for office again while knowing he was guilty of charges. Collins’ son Cameron Collins and the father of Cameron’s fiance Steven Zarsky pleaded guilty to charges. According to Buffalo News Mr. Zarsky stated “I’m truly sorry for my action,” Zarsky said. “It is a moment of weakness that will haunt me for the rest of my days.” as he pleaded guilty to charges. Collins’ corrupt act tarnished his reputation and dragged his whole family down.

This corrupt behavior by an elected official is not the first and will not be the last but it should be treated as a significant abuse of office that incurs a significant penalty.

Being elected to office is an honor not a get-out-of-jail-free card.

Pat Biancaniello