Teamsters Sue Carey, Others for Racketeering

April 21, 2000 10:50 AM, EDT

The Teamsters union has sued former president Ron Carey and others, alleging racketeering, embezzlement, breach of fiduciary duties and legal malpractice during Carey’s re-election effort.

Filed April 17 in the U.S. District Court for Manhattan, the lawsuit alleges that the defendants masterminded a complicated scheme in which they swapped union funds for contributions to the Carey campaign. After the 1996 election was overturned, the union paid $2.2 million for a new campaign.

The suit contends that the defendants defrauded the union of at least $885,000. It also alleges unlawful acts under the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. The Teamsters are seeking more than $9 million.

In addition to Carey, former Teamsters government affairs director William Harrison and Carey campaign consultants Martin Davis, Jere Nash and Michael Ansara were named in the suit. Also named were Citizen Action, a nonprofit advocacy group, and the New York law firm Cohen, Weiss and Simon.

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