There's more than one way to skin the crooks on the Barnstable Council....

The Barnstable Town Council, comprised of four practicing attorneys, ignored conflict of interest allegations, and a subsequent affirmation by Michael Dunning,

by reappointing Dunning to another four-year term on the Barnstable Municipal Airport Commission…

Dunning will have his day in civil court, but his recent affirmation of violations of Massachusetts General Law Chapter 268 Section 2 must be addressed by the State Ethics Commission.

The following is from a complaint just filed with the board..

State Ethics Commission
One Ashburton Place
Room 619
Boston MA 02108

Complaint against Michael Dunning, Airport Commissioner, Barnstable Municipal Airport

Gentlemen:

I am asking the Commission to institute an investigation of conflict of interest of Barnstable Airport Commissioner, Michael Dunning for his role in negotiating and signing a Barnstable Municipal Airport lease for two of his law firm’s clients. 

Dunning signed the leases as an Airport Commissioner.

Michael Dunning is an attorney and a partner in the law firm of Dunning & Kirrane, L.L.P. of Mashpee, Massachusetts. 

On January 22th, 2004 the firm incorporated Silvia Aviation, L.L.C. which became Silvia Aviation I, L.L.C. on January 10th, 2005.  Silvia Aviation I, LLC is owned by Floyd Silvia.

Then on August 9th, 2004, Kevin M. Kirrane, Dunning’s partner, incorporated Silvia Aviation II, LLC, owned by Floyd Silvia’s brother Ronald Silvia.

Dunning, signed leases for both corporations in his official capacity as an airport commissioner on August 13, 2004, six months prior to Silvia Aviation I, LLC becoming an entity.

Dunning, as a member of the BMAC permitted the Silvias to build two hangars that did not comply with the airport’s minimum standard agreement with the FAA (less than 10,000 square feet).

The BMAC allowed the smaller constructions to avoid Cape Cod Commission Act thresholds for an environmental review (DRI).

The BMAC gave the Silvia’s an 18 month lease abatement not available to other airport tenants.

The BMAC exempted the Silvia’s from the 3%-of-gross-sales tax other airport tenants paid.

When Richard Cawley, CEO of Rectrix Aviation, Inc., another airport tenant asked how the Silvia’s were given special treatment, he was told that he should have used the services of Kirrane & Dunning, LLP.

When Cawley asked if retaining Dunning‘s law firm for legal work was a conflict of interest, the commissioner replied sic, “that’s the way things are done on Cape Cod.”

This complaint is being filed at this time pursuant to an admission in answer to a complaint in a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts.

These allegations and Dunning’s answer are in a civil complaint in United States District Court of Massachusetts, Case 1:06-cv-11246-RGS, dated 07/20/2006.

While Mr. Dunning is being sued for civil Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations and Sherman Anti-Trust Acts violations, I feel that these same charges are criminal violations of MGL Ch. 268 Sec. 2.

Enclosed are copies of appropriate pages from the Rectrix Aviation, Inc. complaint and Dunning’s recently filed (Sept. 25, 2007) answer to the complaint in which he admits to the charges.

Yours truly,

 

Gary Lopez

I am posting Dunning's answer to the Rectrix complaint that was submitted on September 27th, 2007

RECTRIX AERODROME CENTERS, INC.,
Plaintiff,
v.
BARNSTABLE MUNICIPAL AIRPORT
COMMISSION et al.,
Defendants.
Civil Action
No. 06-11246-RGS

ANSWER

The defendants, the Barnstable Municipal Airport Commission (the “BMAC”), Michael
A. Dunning (“Dunning”), Bruce P. Gilmore (“Gilmore”), Quincy Mosby (“Mosby”), Francisco
Sanchez (“Sanchez”) and Larry F. Wheatley (“Wheatley”), answer as follows the
correspondingly numbered paragraphs of the complaint by Rectrix Aerodrome Centers, Inc.
(“Rectrix”).

77. The defendants admit that the BMAC entered into a lease with Silva Aviation I,owned by Floyd Silva, in August, 2004, and at a later time entered into a lease with Silva Aviation II, owned by Ronald Silvia; that the BMAC granted the Silvias a rental abatement; and that the Silvia leases do not require the Silvias to pay 3% of their Airport-generated revenues to the BMAC; and deny the remaining allegations in ¶ 77.

78. The defendants admit that the BMAC approved construction of two hangars by the Silvias each of less than 10,000 square feet of gross floor area and that the Minimum Standards contain the language selectively quoted in ¶ 78; refer the Court to the full text of the Minimum Standards; and deny the remaining allegations in ¶ 78.

79. The defendants admit that Floyd and Ronald Silvia are brothers, that they were represented by the same attorney before the BMAC, and that the hangars were built by the same builder; state that the allegations concerning the Cape Cod Commission’s regulations are conclusions of law that require no response; and deny the remaining allegations in ¶ 79.

80. The defendants admit that Dunning’s law partner, Kevin Kirrane, provided legal services to the Silvias and incorporated Silvia Aviation I, LLC, owned by Floyd Silvia, and Silvia Aviation II, LLC, owned by Ronald Silvia; that the BMAC entered into a lease with Silva Aviation I in August 2004 and entered into a lease with Silva Aviation II at a later time; lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations in ¶ 80 concerning the dates of incorporation of Silvia Aviation I, LLC, or Silvia Aviation II, LLC; admit that the BMA received a public records request on or about December 29, 2004 from Rectrix and that defendant Mosby responded to this request on or about February 3, 2005; lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations in ¶ 80 as to
whether copies of the Silvia leases were included in the response because the BMAC staff did not retain copies of the records supplied to Rectrix in response to its request; and deny the remaining allegations in ¶ 80.

81. The defendants lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations contained in ¶ 81; but the defendants deny that the Silvias were given special treatment by the BMAC because Dunning’s law firm did legal work for the Silvias or that Rectrix would receive special treatment by the BMAC were it to seek to hire Dunning’s law firm to do legal work.

Your Barnstable Town Councilors, especially Gary Brown, who nominated Dunning for reappointment after he was left off the interview list, appointed him to another term.

You, as voters, have a visceral obligation to punish your elected representatives, just as the State Ethics Commission does by sanctioning Dunning.

You and I know most of the councilors are crooks, and we have a low standard proof to convict and punish.

We simply just don't vote for them.

If Dunning is found guilty of Conflict of Interest he could face three years in prison,

you only have to vote against the twelve councilors who voted to reappoint Michael Dunning, by voting Oui on three.

By voting YES on 3, and a COG-endorsed Charter Commissioner, we can run the crooks out of town hall, and begin to take back our town.

 

IN NOVEMBER DO NOT VOTE FOR;

• GARY BROWN
• JAMES MUNAFO
• HENRY FARNHAM

CHAPTER 268A  SECTION 2

d) Whoever, directly or indirectly, corruptly asks, demands, exacts, solicits, seeks, accepts, receives or agrees to receive anything of value for himself or for any other person or entity in return for influence upon the testimony under oath or affirmation of himself or any other person as a witness upon any such trial, hearing or other proceeding or in return for the absence of himself or any other person therefrom;—shall be punished by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars or by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than three years or in a jail or house of correction for not more than two and one half years, or by both such fine and imprisonment in a jail or house of correction; and in the event of final conviction shall be incapable of holding any office of honor, trust or profit under the commonwealth or under any state, county or municipal agency.

Comments

Maybe Dunning will have a cell next to Todd Reine.

[Ace]

Gary,
Where can I find a downloadable copy of the Rectrix lawsuit?

Thanks
Ace

The corruption runs deep in Barnstable.

Voters have to keep Elkunds off the charter commission.

He's all airport, and was responsible for the airport having the autonomy it has.

Gary -

Airport commissioner appointments are for 3 terms not 4.
Elkins (not Elkunds) supported the last charter commissions recommendation giving the BMAC less autonomy and opposed the present structure.

[Gary Lopez]

Elkunds is a former Airport Commissioner. As I recall may have been both an airport and charter commissioner at the same time.

The current charter, the authorship panel of which Elkunds was a member, gave us the mess we're in.

Are you saying that Elkunds had no roll in creating the airport monster?

If Elkunds opposed the language in the charter that created the government within the government, then I will apologize, and if, as you say, supports less autonomy for the airport commission, then I will also support him for the current charter.

Cape Air sold 100ll AV gas for many years but it is not as big a money maker as Jet fuel.....Compitition is the name of the game and if there was any compitition with the town the town would lose because they are losers...

The gistapo tactics at the airport needs to be stopped and the way to do that is to get an honest judge to rule on this. Compitition would put these ass holes in there place...I mean out of business...Just like all the closed down businesses around town.

and they need to put a leash and collar and muzzle on the TSA ass holes at the BMA. They are the new domestic terrorists.

They would shit there pants if the real terrorists showed up. and if and when they do show up there is nothing they can do.

They must feel real good terrorizing the law biding citzens with the threat of fines and prison time they are now the scum of the USA.
And to justify there jobs the sit back in there offices thinking up new ways to terrorize the public.

The day will come when these (TSA) nazi impersonators will say that they were just doing there job like the guards at the Nazi prison camps did..

Or the MacCarthy hearings where there was a communist under every rock. and they were there to protect from them.