Some Justice In Guilty Plea

When Mitchell Anderson pleaded guilty this past week to federal fraud charges and promised to repay the city of Hartford more than $1 million, it was a bit of a balm on the raw wound inflicted by the disastrous plan to revitalize the old Dillon Stadium for a major-league soccer team.

Mr. Anderson, along with James C. Duckett Jr., planned to rebuild the storied stadium in the city’s Sheldon-Charter Oak neighborhood along I-91. They promised a $30 million to $50 million stadium, and city leaders under former Mayor Pedro Segarra were too eager to sign up.

It wasn’t until Hartford Courant reporters Matthew Kauffman and Jenna Carlesso, in October 2015, revealed that Mr. Duckett had been previously convicted of embezzlement that the deal began to unwind.

Mr. Duckett and Mr. Anderson allegedly pocketed money from the city instead of paying subcontractors. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in invoices were billed to the city for work that was never performed. The scandal led to the resignation of Thomas Deller, the city’s former development director.

Mr. Anderson could be sentenced to prison for 30 to 37 months. He will have earned every minute of the time he spends behind bars for cheating the struggling city. Mr. Duckett too. His trial is scheduled to begin in a few months. Each man, not surprisingly, claims the other was in charge of the money for the project.

Everyone wants Hartford to thrive. But city leaders, especially under Mr. Segarra, were far too eager to throw money at this project, negotiated in secret.

The Dunkin’ Donuts Park project ran into trouble as well. At long last, though, it looks to be ready to host the Hartford Yard Goats minor league baseball team in just a few weeks.

Now, as Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy pitch a plan to give the aging XL Center a $250 million makeover, it’s important to be vigilant. Leave giant piles of money around, and rest assured that crooks will come sniffing.

Mr. Anderson should pay for his poor choices. But city officials should have made better choices themselves.

Source: The Hartford Courant