State Ethics Commission Chairman Resigns - City Room Blog - NYTimes.com

More at NYTimes.com: “John D. Feerick, the chairman of the state Commission on Public Integrity, has resigned.

The commission, which oversees ethics and lobbying rules in Albany, announced the surprise resignation on Monday afternoon. The commission is mired in an investigation by the state inspector general.

Inspector General Joseph Fisch has been examining whether Herbert Teitelbaum, the commission’s executive director, or any other commission staff member improperly passed information to the staff of former Gov. Eliot Spitzer in the midst of the so-called Troopergate scandal.

The commission has said nothing improper occurred.

Mr. Feerick, a respected former dean of Fordham Law School, was appointed by Mr. Spitzer in 2007. In a statement, Mr. Feerick, 73, said “my health and energy have declined and I no longer believe that I can give my responsibilities the attention they require.”

His resignation will be effective on Feb. 12.”

Dawnell Batista - KIDNEY WOMAN DENIES AFFAIR - New York Post

More at New York Post: “The lawyer for Dawnell Batista, 44, asked Judge Jeffrey Grob to place a gag order on the case after her estranged husband, Richard Batista, held a news conference last week accusing her of adultery.

Though Grob denied the motion, lawyer Douglas Rothkopf also argued that his client was the victim of a "hyper-suspicious" husband and that no adultery had ever taken place.

"He would rummage through her underwear drawer sniffing her underwear [to see if she had cheated]," Rothkopf said inside a Mineola courtroom.

Batista, a vascular surgeon at Nassau University Medical Center, said that his wife left him after having an affair with her physical therapist.

The Batista's were both in court this morning, but never made eye contact with one other throughout the proceeding.

"This is a man who put his life on the line and his wife has treated him like a piece of dirt," said Richard Batista's lawyer, Dominic Barbara, adding that his client has the right to speak publicly about what he had been through.”