‘Resume Padding’ Leads To New Ethics Complaint Against Todd Spitzer
The spotlight on all the pulled endorsements over Todd Spitzer’s racism scandal has led to another damning discovery: Some of his claimed endorsements were not real in the first place.
Orange County Watch, which has been breaking news of the prosecutor’s resume padding for weeks, has now obtained a filing with the California State Bar that says these phantom endorsements violate state ethics rules that require attorneys to be honest, including in campaign advertisements.
“Spitzer has falsely presented the endorsements of prominent public figures and organizations,” the complaint reads, “and should face discipline by the Bar.”
The allegations add to previous claims that Spitzer violated state ethics rules by retaliating against the victims of “Scary Gary” LoGalbo’s sexual harassment scandal. That filing, which remains pending with the State Bar, accused Spitzer of lying about his attempts to punish victims for reporting LoGalbo’s misconduct, and of releasing confidential information about the victims and witnesses who risked their careers to bring the rampant sexual abuse and harassment to light.
“Spritzer’s record raises serious questions about his fitness to serve as Orange County’s chief prosecutor, a job that asks a lawyer to serve as a ‘minister of justice,’” law professor and legal ethics expert Daniel Medwed told Orange County Watch. “Credible allegations of dubious behavior—ranging from possible retaliation against a victim of sexual harassment to documented inaccuracies on his resume—suggest he might not be up to the task of fulfilling the special ethical responsibilities of a district attorney.”
The new, amended filing details how, “in multiple instances, Spitzer has published endorsements that do not exist.” For example, Spitzer listed Crime Survivors, Inc. among his official endorsements, but the group previously told Orange County Watch that “we do not endorse candidates for office or get involved in politics.” Crime Survivors, Inc. is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and is therefore “absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office,” according to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance.
Spitzer’s campaign website also listed Inyo County District Attorney Tom Hardy under “endorsements,” but Hardy similarly told Orange County Watch that “I hadn’t ever endorsed him. If I am on some list, it must be a mistake. I better email his campaign.” Likewise, the complaint notes that Spitzer still lists shock-jock radio hosts “John and Ken” of KFI AM640, despite the duo saying that they have not endorsed Spitzer for this election cycle.
According to the complaint, listing false endorsements violates a state rule that “a lawyer shall not make a false or misleading communication about the lawyer or the lawyer’s services,” and notes that this prohibition includes even “truthful statements that are misleading.”
One of Spitzer’s opponents in this year’s election for district attorney, lawyer Pete Hardin, agrees. “[Spitzer’s] willingness to lie to the public raises serious ethical questions about his willingness to lie to the court and in the cases he prosecutes,” Hardin told Orange County Watch. “I would never bring my integrity into question by claiming support from those who don't support me, and I would never embarrass our county in the myriad ways that Todd Spitzer has.”
When it comes to resume padding to further his political ambitions, the false endorsements are not Spitzer’s first offense. As Orange County Watch has previously reported, Spitzer has also made inaccurate claims about his record and professional accomplishments. For example, Spitzer previously claimed that he has a “100% conviction rate” until a victims’ rights advocate filed a lawsuit over the assertion. Spitzer then downgraded his conviction rate to “92%” in subsequent retellings.
And when Spitzer ran for district attorney in 2018, he boasted about being “voted” Orange County’s “top prosecutor.” But according to the Association of Orange County Deputy District Attorneys, the only potentially relevant award was when Spitzer was voted “prosecutor of the year” over a quarter-century earlier in 1992. “It’s kind of deceptive and it comes across like, hey, this guy is a top-notch prosecutor when the reality is that was 26 years ago… when I was getting out of high school,” one prosecutor said at the time.
Looking at Spitzer’s record of dishonesty on the whole, law professor Lara Bazelon told Orange County Watch that “he is ethically compromised to the point that he needs to step down.”
Spitzer’s “record of committing or enabling misconduct is breathtaking and cuts a wide swath,” Bazelon said. “From allowing one of his top deputies—and the best man at his wedding—to sexually harass female prosecutors with a relentlessness that earned him the nickname ‘Scary Gary,’ to allegedly retaliating against the victims and then lying about it, to using the ‘n-word’ and making racist comments about a Black defendant in a death penalty case, to misleading voters a number of things including his roster of endorsements and conviction rate, Spitzer has made it clear that he is not fit for public office.”