NEW YORK (AP) – Documents obtained by The Associated Press offer a peek into the legal strategies being explored by officials for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey who are under investigation for a controversial decision to divert $1.8 billion from an agency rail project to state highway repairs.
One tactic apparently under consideration – persuading prosecutors to wrap up the probe with a sternly worded grand jury report instead of an indictment.
The Manhattan district attorney and the Securities and Exchange Commission have both been examining whether the Port Authority misled bondholders when it used the money on state-owned roads, including the Pulaski Skyway, an elevated road connecting two New Jersey cities, Newark and Jersey City.
That’s an issue because the Port Authority’s main business is operating metropolitan New York’s major airports, seaports and key river crossings, and the bi-state agency is generally forbidden from spending money on state roads.
Facing an empty highway fund, New Jersey Gov. Christie canceled a planned new rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River and in 2011 announced that the authority would spend $1.8 billion from that project to rehabilitate the Skyway and a nearby bridge and road.