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Sandy relief group says N.J.'s actions "extreme", Gov. Christie's wife a crook.
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Mar 27, 2013, 12:01:24 AM3/27/13
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ASBURY PARK, N.J. -- The attorney for an embattled Superstorm
Sandy relief group being sued by the state questioned why a fund
headed by Gov. Chris Chistie's wife isn't being subjected to the
same "extreme" regulatory enforcement that his clients are
facing.
Both groups have distributed just a small portion of the
donations they have raised since the Oct. 29 superstorm, noted
attorney Robert E. Levy, who is representing the Hurricane Sandy
Relief Foundation.
"I don't think that Christie's charity should be in trouble; I
don't think our charity should be in trouble," Levy said. "It's
really a disparate treatment for the same or similar conduct."
Cam Henderson, executive director of the Hurricane Sandy New
Jersey Relief Fund, which New Jersey first lady Mary Pat
Christie heads, declined comment.
Levy defended his group's actions in a brief filed Monday in
state Superior Court in Hackensack. He says his client's
organization is being singled out for "technical deficiencies"
its operators were in the process of addressing.
The state "jumped to conclusions" about the intentions of the
group's founders, Sparta couple John Sandberg and Christina
Terraccino, "based of factually inaccurate and incomplete
information," Levy said.
Sandberg and Terraccino have given out $1,650 of the more than
$650,000 contributed, according to the state Division of
Consumer Affairs. The first lady's charity has distributed $1
million of the $32 million raised so far.
In the aftermath of the storm, Levy noted, his clients' group
quickly distributed approximately $400,000 in clothing and
supplies to hard-hit communities in New Jersey and New York.
Sandberg and Terraccino stopped distributing monetary aid to
Sandy victims in January, at the state's request, after the
foundation was inundated with donations at the end of December,
Levy said.
An Asbury Park Press story in February raised questions about
the Sandberg and Terraccino's group and its operators. The
foundation wasn't a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charity, as it claimed
on its website, and it was using the name of the first lady's
charity to solicit donations online, the Press found.
The state attorney general and Consumer Affairs, which had been
investigating the organization, subsequently filed a civil
lawsuit on Feb. 21 against the group and its operators, alleging
multiple violations of the state's charities code. Together,
Sandberg and Terraccino improperly transferred more than $13,000
of the group's donations to their personal accounts, the state's
complaint charged.
The foundation's website stated that "all of our donations"
would go toward relief and rebuilding aid. However, Levy said
the transfers cited in the state's complaint were for
"reasonable expenses" for which the couple was entitled to be
reimbursed.
The couple has since transferred the money back into an attorney
escrow account, along with more than $644,000 in donated funds,
according to the terms of a Feb. 28 court order, he stated in
the brief.
Just last week, the Internal Revenue Service granted the group
tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) organization, Levy noted.
In an interview, Levy suggested that the group's early missteps
were due to "multitasking."
"They were attempting to start up the charity, they were
attempting to collect goods, they were collecting and imparting
information, and they were trying to come up with the best way
to distribute the funds they had collected," Levy said.
Levy said the Division of Consumer Affairs "gave them a certain
amount of time to get their paperwork in order and then filed
the complaint before the deadline."
The Attorney General's Office issued the following statement in
response to Levy's brief:
"The Office of the Attorney General does not comment on ongoing
litigation. We will respond by filing with the court a detailed
reply to the defendants' brief, and further outlining the
organization's alleged, multiple violations of New Jersey's laws
intended to protect consumers from fraud and ensure the honesty
and transparency of charitable organizations."
Another hearing in the case is scheduled for early April.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/26/sandy-
relief-group-complains/2023369/
Sandy relief group being sued by the state questioned why a fund
headed by Gov. Chris Chistie's wife isn't being subjected to the
same "extreme" regulatory enforcement that his clients are
facing.
Both groups have distributed just a small portion of the
donations they have raised since the Oct. 29 superstorm, noted
attorney Robert E. Levy, who is representing the Hurricane Sandy
Relief Foundation.
"I don't think that Christie's charity should be in trouble; I
don't think our charity should be in trouble," Levy said. "It's
really a disparate treatment for the same or similar conduct."
Cam Henderson, executive director of the Hurricane Sandy New
Jersey Relief Fund, which New Jersey first lady Mary Pat
Christie heads, declined comment.
Levy defended his group's actions in a brief filed Monday in
state Superior Court in Hackensack. He says his client's
organization is being singled out for "technical deficiencies"
its operators were in the process of addressing.
The state "jumped to conclusions" about the intentions of the
group's founders, Sparta couple John Sandberg and Christina
Terraccino, "based of factually inaccurate and incomplete
information," Levy said.
Sandberg and Terraccino have given out $1,650 of the more than
$650,000 contributed, according to the state Division of
Consumer Affairs. The first lady's charity has distributed $1
million of the $32 million raised so far.
In the aftermath of the storm, Levy noted, his clients' group
quickly distributed approximately $400,000 in clothing and
supplies to hard-hit communities in New Jersey and New York.
Sandberg and Terraccino stopped distributing monetary aid to
Sandy victims in January, at the state's request, after the
foundation was inundated with donations at the end of December,
Levy said.
An Asbury Park Press story in February raised questions about
the Sandberg and Terraccino's group and its operators. The
foundation wasn't a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charity, as it claimed
on its website, and it was using the name of the first lady's
charity to solicit donations online, the Press found.
The state attorney general and Consumer Affairs, which had been
investigating the organization, subsequently filed a civil
lawsuit on Feb. 21 against the group and its operators, alleging
multiple violations of the state's charities code. Together,
Sandberg and Terraccino improperly transferred more than $13,000
of the group's donations to their personal accounts, the state's
complaint charged.
The foundation's website stated that "all of our donations"
would go toward relief and rebuilding aid. However, Levy said
the transfers cited in the state's complaint were for
"reasonable expenses" for which the couple was entitled to be
reimbursed.
The couple has since transferred the money back into an attorney
escrow account, along with more than $644,000 in donated funds,
according to the terms of a Feb. 28 court order, he stated in
the brief.
Just last week, the Internal Revenue Service granted the group
tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) organization, Levy noted.
In an interview, Levy suggested that the group's early missteps
were due to "multitasking."
"They were attempting to start up the charity, they were
attempting to collect goods, they were collecting and imparting
information, and they were trying to come up with the best way
to distribute the funds they had collected," Levy said.
Levy said the Division of Consumer Affairs "gave them a certain
amount of time to get their paperwork in order and then filed
the complaint before the deadline."
The Attorney General's Office issued the following statement in
response to Levy's brief:
"The Office of the Attorney General does not comment on ongoing
litigation. We will respond by filing with the court a detailed
reply to the defendants' brief, and further outlining the
organization's alleged, multiple violations of New Jersey's laws
intended to protect consumers from fraud and ensure the honesty
and transparency of charitable organizations."
Another hearing in the case is scheduled for early April.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/26/sandy-
relief-group-complains/2023369/
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