Lawyer plays both sides of the casino table
The governor's former legal adviser on Indian casinos, now working in the gambling practice of a private law firm, was actively involved in establishing the same commission she now lobbies, Massachusetts Gaming Commission emails show.
In dozens of emails, released by the commission after a Times public records request, E. Abim Thomas emerges as a trusted adviser to commissioners on hiring consultants, vetting law firms and providing guidance on federal Indian gambling laws.
The Times first reported Thomas' jump from the Patrick administration to the Boston law firm of Goodwin Procter in December and requested the emails at that time.
After the Times raised questions about a possible conflict of interest, a state Ethics Commission official in an email to Thomas reiterated it had cleared her to practice gambling law even though state law requires a one-year cooling-off period before a state employee can go before an agency he or she had direct contact with as an employee.
Neither Thomas nor gaming commissioners agreed to be interviewed for this story. In an email from Goodwin Procter, spokesman Lee Feldman reiterated Thomas' role had been cleared by the Ethics Commission.
"We remain convinced that Ms. Thomas has fully and completely complied with all ethical and legal requirements under Massachusetts law and the state's Rules of Professional Conduct for attorneys," the firm's statement reads. "Based on specific guidance from both the firm's Ethics Advisory Committee and the state Ethics Commission, we believe that her work in this area meets all legal and ethical standards and is entirely appropriate."
In December, former state Attorney General Scott Harshbarger, a casino critic, told the Times that Thomas working for Goodwin Procter on casino interests "raises with the public the appearance that inside information and influence is now being used for private individuals rather than the public interest."
In a more recent interview, state Sen. James Eldridge, D-Acton, a casino opponent who pushed for a five-year cooling-off period for legislators to work for gambling interests, said Thomas is an example of why he wanted stricter rules.
"It's going to cast doubt on people's trust in government," Eldridge said. "Even if the letter of the law was followed, my greater concern here is, once the gaming commission makes the decision where to locate casinos, is that it will create more temptation for those in government to make the jump to work for a developer or a casino because of the lucrative financial opportunities."
Feldman's email downplayed Thomas' role in establishing the gaming commission, saying she never sat in on interviews for commission consultants because of prior commitments, and the bid documents she passed on for use by the commission were used by the governor's office for other matters.
The dozens of emails released by the gaming commission paint a different picture of the role Thomas played in shaping the agency.
"Thank you so much for all your help getting the commission up and running — I'm not sure what we could have done without you!" Janice Reilly, the commission's chief of staff, wrote in an email congratulating Thomas on her honeymoon and new job with Goodwin Procter.
In another email, Commissioner James McHugh, a retired judge, thanks Thomas for her careful and thoughtful counsel on the compact.
"The commonwealth is by far the better for your careful stewardship of that process and for the thought and diligence you brought to other matters you faced while working for the governor," McHugh wrote. "Have a wonderful trip and, after you return, I look forward to working with you in your new capacity."
CONTRADICTORY OPINION
Thomas was one of the chief advisers for Gov. Deval Patrick in a compact with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe that was rejected in October by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs. The bureau considered the 21.5 percent of gross gambling revenue to be too lucrative for what the tribe was receiving from the state in concessions. Some aspects of the compact were deemed illegal by Kevin Washburn, assistant secretary of the bureau.
Later this month, the gaming commission will decide whether to open Southeastern Massachusetts, known as Region C in the state law that authorizes casinos, to commercial bids or to allow the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe more time to clear federal hurdles for its proposed $500 million Indian casino in Taunton.
Thomas, in her new role as a private attorney, already has written on behalf of an unnamed client giving a completely contradictory opinion to the one she had given commission Chairman Stephen Crosby in an email months earlier while she was still on the state payroll, the emails released by the commission show.
Her Nov. 27 letter, written on Goodwin Procter letterhead, states that the rejection of the compact by the bureau was in effect a failure by the tribe to meet a July 31 deadline in the state's Expanded Gaming Act, which she helped craft.
"If the July 31 deadline was not met, then the commission is obligated under the Expanded Gaming Act to request applications for a commercial license in Region C," Thomas wrote.
On Aug. 2, just after the initial compact agreement was ratified by the state Legislature, Thomas answered a series of questions raised by Crosby in an email. One of those questions was whether a rejection by the bureau, which was hypothetical at the time, would constitute the tribe missing its deadline.
"We have not interpreted the statutory language to mean that," Thomas wrote. "The statute required the Legislature to approve the compact with the governor by July 31 and the Legislature satisfied that requirement."
Goodwin Procter is unfazed by Thomas changing her opinion to suit her client. "Internal Goodwin Procter communications concerning client matters are confidential," Feldman wrote.
"However, nothing prohibited Ms. Thomas from advocating a view in her public comment letter to the commission that differed from her views of the governor's office that she may have communicated during her tenure as a member of the governor's staff."
CELEBRATORY LUNCH
The tribe, which hosted Thomas and other state leaders at a celebratory clambake in August where lobsters were the main course, has declined to comment publicly on her change of jobs or her change of opinion. The Mashpee tribe is in a tenuous position because it still has to play nice with the governor's office as negotiations on a new compact are at a critical stage.
In a letter to the commission, a tribe lawyer picked apart Thomas' Goodwin Procter letter. The commission can open Region C to competitive bids only if it concludes the "tribe will not have land take into trust," the letter states.
The tribe's federal land application is still pending. In February, the bureau issued an advisory opinion, released by the tribe, announcing the federal agency is moving ahead with review of the application as an "initial reservation" for land in Mashpee and Taunton.
The hundreds of documents turned over by the gaming commission show Thomas not only advised the commissioners on key legal issues, but that she had a friendly relationship with them as well.
A series of emails show Crosby and McHugh inviting Thomas out for "lunch (or drinks or breakfast; whatever is most convenient for you)" to celebrate her wedding. They settle on lunch June 28 at Hillstone Restaurant in Boston, the email exchange shows.
McHugh attended a going-away party thrown for Thomas. All of the commissioners were invited, but Crosby and Commissioner Gayle Cameron were out of the country at the time on a gaming commission trip.
Another email indicated that McHugh planned to be a guest speaker at Goodwin Procter after Thomas joined the firm. Feldman, in his email, said the appearance never took place and had nothing to do with Thomas.
The gaming commission, which has promised an open and transparent process, refused repeated requests to make Crosby and McHugh available to answer specific questions. Instead, they issued a statement through spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll, reassuring that commissioners can remain impartial.
They've already proven they're not impartial!
"The commission is committed to a fair, transparent and participatory process for all of its decisions," the email states. "All five commissioners are fully committed to that process and will rigorously employ it with every decision they make regardless of the persons or entities affected by those decisions."
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