Embattled Suffolk County Register of Probate Campatelli agrees to pay $10,000 to resolve campaign violations
Embattled Suffolk County Register of Probate Patricia Campatelli — already on paid leave after allegedly punching an employee — has paid $10,000 to resolve charges she violated state campaign finance rules, including one barring the use of campaign money for personal expenses.
Campatelli used her campaign account to pay $600 in personal expenses, according to an agreement with the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance dated Feb.13, but made public on Friday. She also made several payments from the campaign account with checks that bounced.
The agreement said Campatelli also violated rules against commingling personal and campaign funds. Under state law, all campaign expenses must be paid with a campaign checking account or credit card, but Campatelli spent $10,000 using her own funds and credit and debit cards.
Campatelli’s committee also failed to file deposit reports on time, failed to itemize $1,500 in donations, and collected $900 from businesses, which are prohibited from making political donations. She was also unable to produce receipts or records for numerous expenditures, the eight-page agreement said.
Campatelli allegedly punched long-time court employee Timothy Perry repeatedly in the face as the pair rode home from a night of partying at two Boston bars on Dec. 18. Perry told friends the assault left him bloodied and begging to get out of the car as it sped along Route 1A.
Campatelli, who was first elected in 2012, has been on paid administrative leave since Jan. 15 when the Massachusetts Trial Court launched an independent investigation of her conduct, following new questions about her alleged assault on Perry.
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