Flynn admits errors in filing financial interest statements

Apr. 10—State Senate candidate Marty Flynn filed an amended financial interest statement Friday during a break in a hearing meant to determine if a previous statement he filed should mean he's taken off the May 18 election ballot.

Flynn, a Democratic state representative, also promised to file another amended statement after a lawyer for two Scranton Republicans challenging his ballot status got him to admit the new financial interest statement didn't include rental income from the other apartment in the Oram Street duplex where he lives.

"Now that I know that I have to, yes," Flynn testified when his lawyer, attorney Adam C. Bonin, asked if he would amend the statement yet again.

Flynn testified during a hearing before state Commonwealth Court Judge Christine Fizzano Cannon on a petition by Charlie Spano and Joe Albert to remove Flynn from the ballot. They contend Flynn never personally filed a valid financial interest statement by the March 29 deadline but had his campaign manager do it.

Flynn, who represents the 113th House District, wants to fill the 22nd Senate District seat left vacant March 8 when Democratic Sen. John Blake resigned. Flynn faces Lackawanna County Commissioner Chris Chermak, a Republican, and Marlene Sebastianelli, a Green Party candidate, in the special election on primary election day.

Financial interest statements are meant to disclose the sources of income, debts and affiliations with companies or other organizations of an elected or public official or a candidate. That helps voters judge if officials or candidates act appropriately.

The Republicans say Flynn had to file the financial interest statement himself, not leave that up to Luke Borwegen, his campaign manager. The electronic version of the statement filed March 17 shows Borwegen filed it.

Borwegen and Flynn testified they sat next to each other in person and filed the statement through Borwegen's laptop with Flynn instructing his campaign manager on the statement's contents.

Both testified Borwegen's name may have ended up listed as the filer because the laptop may have filled in his name automatically.

Bonin argued that was a minor flaw anyway, the kind the state Supreme Court ruled wasn't enough to remove someone from the ballot after years of "gotcha litigation."

Attorney Thomas W. King III, the lawyer for Spano and Albert, saw Borwegen's filing as the latest in a series of Flynn errors on financial interest statements over the years, one that showed "bad faith." The Supreme Court ruling, he said, only allowed for unintentional, "good faith" errors.

Under questioning by his lawyer about the amended statement he filed Friday, Flynn said he didn't previously list two car loans, one from the PSECU Credit Union. One loan was for a 2014 Lincoln, the other a 2006 Chevy Corvette, he said.

"Those are car loans that I was not aware had to be issued on ethics form (financial interest statement)," he testified.

Under cross-examination, King pointed to Flynn's 2016 and 2017 financial interest statements. The 2016 form lists a $30,000 loan from PSECU for the Corvette, the 2017 form also lists PSECU debt, which Flynn said may have been for the Lincoln. Flynn's 2018 and 2019 statements don't list the loans. Neither does the 2020 statement filed in Borwegen's name.

"Why didn't you list the car loans in 2019, when you filled out that form?" King asked.

"Because I didn't remember that I had to," Flynn replied.

Evidence King presented also showed Flynn failed to list a mortgage as a debt on a rental property at Rear 1633 Dorothy St. on any of his financial statements before Friday.

Then, King turned to Flynn's home at 1520 Oram St., a duplex with one apartment rented to someone else. Neither its mortgage nor its rental income show up on Flynn's financial interest statements, King noted.

Bonin objected, saying mortgages on a residence need not be reported.

"It does if the other part of your house is a rental unit," King shot back. Flynn said he would amend his financial interest statement to reflect the mortgage.

Bonin told the judge none of the contents of the current and past financial interest statements matter because King never challenged their contents in Spano and Albert's initial objection. He repeatedly objected to any reference to them, though the judge allowed their inclusion. He said the only question is if Flynn validly filed the electronic financial interest statement.

"This is sandbagging and this attempt to amend the objection should be denied," Bonin said.

The judge set a Monday deadline for filing written legal arguments, but did not indicate when she would rule.

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