Sen. Ruben Diaz: My Savior Jesus Christ Will Never Allow ME To Be Sent To Prison

City & State covers the never-ending scandal of the New York Senate:

The Four Amigos – the band of New York State Senate Democrats who were instrumental in handing control of the Senate to Republicans in a wild power grab in 2009 – are now just one. After a string of criminal prosecutions felled former Senators Carl Kruger, Hiram Monserrate and, Pedro Espada, Jr., who was convicted on four counts of fraud in Brooklyn federal court yesterday, the only member of the amigos still free from felony conviction, not to mention still in office, is Rubén Díaz, Sr., the Bronx preacher in the cowboy hat known for his outspokenness on same-sex marriage and really, anything else that springs to his mind.

Diaz says he’s not worried he will fall victim to the same fate as the others, and he faces no indictment or charges of wrongdoing. But Clement Gardner, the head of nonprofit agency Christian Community Benevolent Association, which Diaz founded, was indicted in March on a $75,000 embezzlement charge. “There’s been persecution of all of us since the coup,” said Diaz in a phone interview, when I told him about the jury verdict in Espada’s trial. “I never worry. I never worry. I am a pastor, I am a preacher, and my life is in the hands of my savior Jesus Christ,” he said.

Diaz added that his fate is "already written," so he doesn't worry about ever being the Fourth Amigo to wear prison stripes. (Tipped by JMG reader Duncan)

NY Senate Race Too Close To Call

The special election to replace soon-to-be imprisoned NY Sen. Carl Kruger is too close to call, even with 100% of yesterday's votes counted. Election official say they must now wade through the 2000 absentee ballots before declaring a winner. Even though Kruger's district will vanish next year, NOM plunged into the election and paid for ads in Brooklyn's Jewish press, declaring that it was forbidden by Torah law to vote for Democratic NYC Councilman Lew Fidler (above left), who supports gay marriage. Last night both sides declared victory.

Democratic District Leader Frank Seddio, who is expected to run for Fidler’s council seat, said that Storobin and his team lied when they claimed victory. “Storobin’s been lying through the whole campaign,” Seddio said. “Why would he stop now?” Fidler proclaimed victory to dozens of supporters at the Kings Bay Y on Nostrand Avenue. “I’m proud of winning and I’m proud to be your next state senator,” Fidler said. But Storobin was saying the exact same thing less than two miles away to more than 100 supporters at the OPM restaurant on Emmons Avenue.

RELATED: In December NY Sen. Carl Kruger (D) was sentenced to nine years in prison for bribery and corruption in a kickback scheme that involved his gynecologist boyfriend. Kruger earned the enmity of gay activists in 2009 when he voted against same-sex marriage, leading to protests outside the closeted politicians home.

NEW YORK: State Sen. Carl Kruger Sentenced To Nine Years In Prison

New York state Sen. Carl Kruger has been sentenced to nine years in prison for corruption. The Brooklyn Democrat resigned from the Senate shortly before making a plea agreement.

Also pleading guilty was Kruger’s boyfriend, gynecologist Michael Turano, who faces up to five years for depositing the nearly $500,000 in payoffs into his own business accounts. “I understood that part of this money was paid because Carl Kruger, acting in his official capacity as a member of the New York state Senate, sought to benefit those individuals or entities making such payments,” Turano said through tears. Turano, 50, then fell apart even worse than Kruger, bowing his head and weeping, his sobs amplified through the courtroom by a nearby microphone. The dramatic display left Kruger looking pained as he covered his eyes with one hand. Kruger — who infuriated gays and lesbians by opposing same-sex marriage before reversing himself this year — has refused to acknowledge his relationship with Turano, despite wiretaps in which they were caught engaging in “baby talk” and discussing how Kruger fell in love with Turano at first sight.

And now we have to go through another special election.

NEW YORK: Closeted State Sen. Carl Kruger To Plead Guilty To Corruption

New York state Sen. Carl Kruger will plead guilty to federal corruption charges that he took over $1 million in bribe offers to fund an extravagant lifestyle which included a garish waterfront mansion, a luxury yacht, and a Bentley. Kruger's gynecologist boyfriend is also expected to plead guilty. The pair was effectively outed by the New York Times in March.

Mr. Kruger, an influential Democrat and 16-year legislator, was expected to plead guilty to four of the five counts in the indictment, according to two of the people. The charges include fraud conspiracy, for which he could face up to 20 years in prison, and bribery conspiracy, which carries a maximum term of five years. The two people said Mr. Turano, also charged with all five counts, was expected to plead guilty to a single bribery conspiracy count, for which he would face a maximum of five years in prison. Mr. Kruger’s lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said Mr. Kruger and Mr. Turano were scheduled to appear before the presiding judge in the case, Jed S. Rakoff of Federal District Court in Manhattan, on Tuesday afternoon; he would not discuss the details of what was expected to transpire. If he pleads guilty to a felony, Mr. Kruger will automatically lose his job.

RELATED: Kruger was one of the eight traitorous Senate Democrats who voted against same-sex marriage in 2009, leading gay activists to denounce him as a self-hating closet case and picket outside of his home. The mainstream media took little notice at the time. However Kruger did vote in favor of marriage equality this year, perhaps because by then he'd already been outed. He has never publicly addressed his sexual orientation.

NEW YORK: How Outed Anti-Gay Senator Carl Kruger Spent All That Bribe Money

While recently outed anti-gay New York state Sen. Carl Kruger and his gynecologist boyfriend await trial on federal bribery and corruption charges, the New York Times examines what Kruger did with all that looted dough.

Federal corruption charges leveled against State Senator Carl Kruger this month described how he had helped provide luxuries to the two brothers with whom he lives in Brooklyn. The charges say Mr. Kruger, 61, a Democrat, used money from bribes for the mortgage of the waterfront mansion in Mill Basin where the three men live with the brothers’ 73-year-old mother. Then, the charges say, there is the Bentley driven by one of the brothers — bribe money paid for the lease. Also, according to the charges, bribe money went to their credit card bills as well as to mysterious “apparently personal payments.”

Mysterious "apparently personal payments"? Uh HUH. Wanna bet there's a rentboy or ten on the other end of THAT little detail?

RELATED: The loathsome Kruger was one of the eight traitorous Senate Democrats who voted against same-sex marriage in 2009, leading gay activists to denounce him as a self-hating closet case and picket outside of his home. The mainstream media took little notice at the time, something they surely now regret.

UPDATE: Here's the waterfront home paid for by Kruger's crimes. The Times describes the house as "cruise-ship-meets-mob-mansion." Its previous owner was a Luchese family mob boss who ordered a hit on the house's architect. Not pictured is Kruger's 49-foot yacht, Special Delivery.

ALBANY: Outed And Indicted Anti-Gay Sen. Carl Kruger Shunned By Lawmakers

Days after being released on bail for federal corruption charges, anti-gay and newly outed NY state Sen. Carl Kruger returned to Albany where his fellow lawmakers are now treating the once powerful Kruger like the steaming cesspool of a human that he is. The New York Times issues this blistering observance:

Mr. Kruger, his head down, again declined to speak to reporters. He piled into an elevator and stood, completely silent, as the elevator stopped, floor by floor, and people got on and off. Then he took an underground passageway from the Legislative Office Building to the Capitol. No one spoke to him. People stared, the way people stare when trying to seem as if they are not staring. Then another elevator — which seemed to take an afternoon to open its doors. Mr. Kruger’s every action was watched, his every embarrassment noted. On the Senate floor, he had to figure out where he was supposed to sit. The loss of his committee rank also lost him a prominent place. Mr. Kruger instead slouched in a seat in the back.

For now Kruger will remain in office while he and his wretched gynecologist boyfriend await trial on bribery and money laundering charges. He has been stripped of his post as the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, an office typically filthy with favor-seeking lobbyists as the legislature hammers out the budget. Yesterday he was to issue an apology to the Senate for the "distraction" of his arrest, but that speech was canceled after many refused to attend.

CORRUPTION BUST: New York Post Outs Anti-Gay Sen. Carl Kruger And Boyfriend

The New York Post has blown the lid off the federal corruption investigation of anti-gay state Sen. Carl Kruger, outing both Kruger and his wealthy gynecologist boyfriend.

Closeted Brooklyn state Sen. Carl Kruger, a Democratic powerhouse, traded political favors for more than $1 million in bribes over the last five years -- which his live-in boyfriend helped launder, the feds charged yesterday. Kruger and his secret longtime companion, Manhattan gynecologist Michael Turano, were among eight men arrested in a sweeping government "pay-to-play" corruption scandal. The charges include allegations that Kruger, Brooklyn Assemblyman William Boyland and previously convicted Queens Assemblyman Anthony Seminerio -- who died in prison in January -- received bribes and other largesse to help two competing health-care companies buy hospitals, and direct state funds to those firms. Kruger's constant companion, Turano, is accused of using bribe money he deposited in two shell companies for Kruger to pay the lease on a Bentley luxury sedan, credit-card bills and the mortgage on the garish, multimillion-dollar Mill Basin home where the two men for years have shacked up with Turano's mom and brother, authorities and neighbors said.

The loathsome Kruger helped sink New York's marriage equality bill in 2009 when he joined eight Democrats in voting against it.

NEW YORK: Anti-Gay Sen. Carl Kruger To Surrender On Corruption Charges

Tomorrow morning anti-gay New York state Sen. Carl Kruger will surrender to federal authorities on charges that he accepted campaign donations in return for favors doled out to powerful businessmen. Kruger was one of the eight traitorous Senate Democrats who voted against same-sex marriage in 2009.

Mr. Kruger headed the powerful Senate Finance Committee until Democrats lost control of the chamber last year, a position from which he amassed the Senate’s largest campaign war chest. One of Mr. Kruger’s campaign donors, Michael Levitis, who is suspected of serving as an intermediary between the senator and those seeking favors, pleaded guilty this month of lying to federal investigators in the Brooklyn case. Mr. Kruger is set to join an ever-lengthening parade of New York State lawmakers from both parties who have been indicted, convicted, or pleaded guilty to criminal offenses in the last decade, many of them relating to illegally soliciting or receiving money from individuals seeking help with state business.

In 2008 Kruger was part of the infamous "Gang Of Three" Democrats that engineered a coup in the state Senate, installing Sen. Pedro Espada as Majority Leader. Espada lost his seat in the 2010 primary and is himself under investigation by federal and state authorities for ripping off over $14M from the public health clinic he founded. The last of the Gang Of Three, former Sen. Hiram "Slasher" Monserrate, was indicted last October on federal charges of mail fraud and corruption. Monserrate was expelled from the Senate in early 2010 over a scandal in which he slashed the face of his girlfriend with a broken glass. He subsequently lost a bid for the state Assembly.

Let's hope ALL of the Gang Of Three end up in prison.

RELATED: In December 2009 gay activists picketed Kruger's Brooklyn home, declaring that he was a known self-loathing closet case who only voted against same-sex marriage to shield his own homosexuality.

NEW YORK: Lawmaker Wants To Ban Electronic Devices While Walking

New York state Sen. Carl Kruger wants to make it illegal to use any electronic device while crossing the street.

Violators would be required to appear in court, and revenue from the $100 fines would go to a fund to educate people on the dangers of device distractions, the senator said. “This is not a nuisance offense,” Kruger said. “People are dying.” Kruger re-introduced the bill after a Manhattan man, who reportedly was using an iPod, was killed by a truck as it backed into an Upper East Side crosswalk last month. “If we were acting responsibly, then government would not have to interfere,” he said.

UNRELATED: Gay activists last year picketed a Kruger fundraiser, claiming that the Brooklyn Democrat was a closet case who voted against same-sex marriage in order to hide his sexuality.

NY Atty Gen. Andrew Cuomo To Raise Funds For Sen. Carl "Closet Case" Kruger

NY Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, a presumed (but not yet declared) 2010 gubernatorial candidate, will headline a fundraiser for Brooklyn state Sen. Carl "Closet Case" Kruger, who was one of the Hate Eight Democrats who voted against marriage equality. Not uncoincidentally, Kruger is the chairman of the powerful Senate Finance Committee.

David Mixner reacts:

Is there a time when our allies will ever say, "You know what? I am for marriage equality and I think it is a bottom line civil right. My campaign will never morally support any human being who is opposed to it." Instead of espousing such a moral stance, Attorney General Cuomo is helping the homophobic head of the Finance Committee sell tickets at a good ol' price of $9,500 per ticket. Isn't politics grand?

Cuomo has publicly stated his support for marriage equality.

NY Sen. Carl Kruger: I'm Am Not Gay

Anti-gay closet case NY Sen. Carl Kruger says local activist Allen Roskoff is a "bottom feeder" for saying that he's gay. Which he's not. Totally. No, really, he's not. At all.

Brooklyn state Sen. Carl Kruger became the No. 1 target of gay activists when he voted against same-sex marriage last month. Now, his enemies are circulating photos taken of Kruger at a birthday fund-raiser last year, where cross-dressing entertainer Leonid the Magnificent performed hula-hoop tricks in a skintight cat suit. "For hating gay marriage so much, Kruger sure loves watching tight, Lycra-clad asses," snarked Queerty.com. Gay activist Corey Johnson and Allen Roskoff, the openly gay president of the Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club, have led demonstrations at Kruger's home. Roskoff wrote on his blog, "People ask us how we know he is homosexual. My immediate response is, how does one know that Paul Lynde and Liberace were gay?" Kruger, who denies being gay, called Roskoff "a bottom feeder," and said he was unfazed by the smear campaign. "It goes with the territory," he told Page Six. "I have not changed my position."

Activists Protest At Home Of Anti-Gay Closet Case NY Sen. Carl Kruger

Activists are turning up the heat on the eight Democratic New York senators who voted down same-sex marriage. Yesterday's actions including a protest at the Queens office of Sen. Hiram Monserrate and a similar event outside of Sen. Carl Kruger's Brooklyn home.

Minutes after the vote earlier this month, the unmarried Kruger, whose aide says the Senator "doesn't comment on his personal life," was accosted by activists Corey Johnson and Allen Roskoff in the halls of the Albany state house. Johnson and Roskoff "stunned onlookers" by publicly accusing Kruger of being secretly gay. The senator scurried away without responding.

NY Senate: Backroom Deal To Install Anti-Gay Sen. Espada As Majority Leader, Gay Marriage Will Not Happen In 2009

In a backroom deal that Democrats are somehow hailing as a breakthrough, anti-gay Sen. Pedro Espada Jr. will become Majority Leader of the New York Senate. One of the "Gang Of Three" dissident Democrats that had threatened to hand the leadership over to the GOP, Espada opposes same-sex marriage and wants to the issue put to voters in a referendum.

Under the GOP, marriage equality was not allowed to come to a vote in the Senate. With Espada at the helm, even with the Democrats running the show, it is now definite that we will not see a vote on marriage equality in the next session.

A bill to legalize same-sex marriage will not be brought to the floor of the Senate for a vote this year. Malcolm Smith will announce that he does not believe the measure has sufficient votes to pass - a statement that is at this point undoubtedly true, [JMG: Not all agree.] although it's unclear how long that will last if, as Democrats are hoping, the prospect of being in the minority leads to mass GOP retirements.

Under the power-sharing terms of the deal, a planned change in the Senate rules will allow formerly presumptive majority leader Malcolm Smith (D) to be the Senate's president pro tempore, with Espada becoming Majority Leader and the most powerful Latino politician in the state. Under the GOP, both positions were held by the now-retired Sen. Joe Bruno. Reportedly, Espada will also become vice chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, the last stop for a bill before it is presented to the full Senate for a vote.

And it doesn't stop there. Anti-gay Sen. Carl Kruger, another of the "Gang", will get the plum position of chair of the Senate Finance Committee, a job the GOP had offered Kruger as enticement for him to switch parties. Kruger will get his own multimillion dollar budget and "increased autonomy" in the job. Yes, that's how we do things here in New York - you fuck us over and WE give a high profile job and a few million dollars to play with.

And thus ends our hope for marriage equality in New York in the near future. In 2010 there will be a redistricting in New York state, a process that the Democrats will at least now be able to control. Therein may lie our hope for marriage equality in 2011.

UPDATE: The Empire State Pride Agenda responds to the news:

This afternoon, additional rumors began circulating in the press regarding discussions about a timeline for marriage equality legislation during the State Senate leadership negotiations. We have been told several times by the Democratic Senate Leadership that marriage equality legislation will come to the Senate floor for a vote once we have enough votes to pass the bill. We have no reason to believe that this has changed.

In response to these recent rumors, we have released the statement below. We will continue to update you on this issue.

Pride Agenda Executive Director Alan Van Capelle in Response to Rumors About Marriage Equality and the Senate Leadership Deal

December 4, 2008 - “We are still awaiting the final details of the announced State Senate leadership deal. We would expect that any rumors that marriage equality was somehow a part of this deal are just that—rumors. Civil rights should never be a bargaining chip in any political leadership battle, and we would be outraged if the issue of marriage equality was even part of the discussions.”