Ethics complaint filed against Corzine

TRENTON, N.J., Sept. 2 (UPI) -- Two lawyers say U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine violated ethics rules when he made a large gift to a girlfriend, the head of a New Jersey state employee union.

Carl Mayer and Bruce Afran announced Thursday they had filed a complaint against Corzine and said they were referring the complaint to federal prosecutors, the Star Ledger of Newark reported. Both men are former Green Party candidates, with Afran the party's nominee against Corzine in 2000.

Corzine, now the Democratic candidate for governor, contends his gift to Carla Katz, president of Communication Workers of America Local 1034 in 2002, was a private matter. He loaned her $470,000 to buy her former husband's share of their house and then forgave the loan. Katz and Corzine were romantically involved for about two years.

"This is pretty clearly a personal financial effort to help out someone whom I had a serious relationship with," Corzine said. "It's been reviewed with my lawyers, who spoke openly with the press about our interpretation."

Mayer and Afran say Corzine should have listed the loan on his financial disclosure forms for the Senate.