David Wildstein pleaded guilty to two counts: one of fraud and one of a “conspiracy against civil rights.” Christie ex-ally pleads guilty in Bridgegate scandal Two additional ex-Christie officials were also charged in an indictment for their alleged roles in the lane closures.

A former political ally of Chris Christie pleaded guilty on Friday and two other former officials were indicted for their alleged roles in the Bridgegate scandal that has cast a shadow over the New Jersey governor’s presidential ambitions.

The U.S. attorney for New Jersey, Paul Fishman, did not implicate Christie directly in the alleged crime, adding that “based on the evidence that is currently available to us, we are not going to charge anybody else in this scheme.”


The news offers potential relief for Christie as he considers a 2016 presidential bid, but does not end questions relating to the governor’s relationship with the alleged conspirators and the scheme.

Fishman would not comment on any other potential investigations into Christie’s administration.

Christie said the U.S. attorney’s actions vindicated him, “Today’s charges make clear that what I’ve said from day one is true,” he said over Twitter on Friday afternoon. “I had no knowledge or involvement in the planning or execution of this act.”

David Wildstein, a former Port Authority official and high-school classmate of Christie, cooperated with prosecutors in the 16-month federal investigation. Wildstein admitted the September 2013 closures that snarled traffic on the George Washington Bridge were designed as political retribution against the Fort Lee mayor who withheld his support for Christie’s re-election bid.

On Friday, Wildstein’s attorney Alan Zegas reiterated his challenge to Christie’s account of the incident and what he knew.

“Mr. Christie knew of the lane closures while they were happening,” Zegas said.

More information about what Christie knew when is forthcoming, Zegas said. In a letter published in January 2014, Zegas previously alleged that the closures were the result of “the Christie administration’s order,” though he did not repeat that claim on Friday.

Fishman declined to comment on what Christie might have known about the scheme.

Bill Baroni — Wildstein’s ex-boss — and Christie’s former deputy chief of staff, Bridget Anne Kelly, were also indicted on nine counts each for their alleged roles in the lane closures. The U.S. Attorney said that Wildstein implicated Baroni and Kelly.

Wildstein pleaded guilty to two conspiracy counts. Baroni and Kelly were each charged with three counts of conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud, one count of fraudulently obtaining and misapplying federal property, and one count of deprivation of civil rights.

In her first public appearance in 16 months, Kelly asserted her innocence during a press conference Friday afternoon and called Wildstein a “liar.” She added that the idea that she was the only person in the governor’s office that knew about the scheme was “ludicrous,” but refused to specifically name other employees involved.

Her lawyer, Michael Critchley, said that an explanation for her email calling for traffic problems would surface at the trial.

“[Kelly] didn’t one day wake up and become a rogue state employee,” said Critchley. He attributed some of the narrative developing around Kelly’s role to “sexism.”

Kelly has established a legal defense fund that accepts donations online. The fund’s website features a picture of Kelly with her young children and says that the state of New Jersey has refused to pay for her legal expenses.

Baroni’s lawyer, Michael Baldassare, held a press conference Friday afternoon during which he called Wildstein a “habitual liar.”

Wildstein’s attorney, following the announcement of his plea agreement, said that his client “has fully accepted responsibility for his conduct.” As part of the plea agreement entered into by Wildstein, prosecutors recommended a sentence of between 21 and 27 months imprisonment to the judge.

In the courtroom, when asked by the judge: “Did you punish the mayor … by deliberately causing traffic problems?,” Wildstein answered “yes.” He pleaded guilty on two counts: one of fraud and one of a conspiracy to deny the civil rights of residents of Fort Lee, the New Jersey town most directly affected by the traffic jam.

The indictments of Wildstein, Kelly, and Baroni reveal that the defendants allegedly chose the first day of school to begin the closures to inflict maximum damage on the city of Fort Lee.

Another text message conversation revealed in the indictment allegedly showed Wildstein and Kelly discussing using similar illicit methods to punish another political opponent, an unnamed rabbi. After Wildstein said that the rabbi had “officially pissed me off” in a text message to Kelly, she responded “We cannot cause traffic problems in front of his house, can we?”

According to the documents, Wildstein suggested “Flights to Tel Aviv all mysteriously delayed,” to which Kelly responded “perfect.”

The Bridgegate scandal is again coming to a head as Christie is trying to remain a contender in the early race for the White House. The allegations around his former allies and Christie’s own brash style have harmed his chances in the wide field of Republican presidential hopefuls.

New Jersey State Assemblyman John Wisniewski, the Democratic co-chair of the joint legislative panel that investigated the scandal, used the news of the charges to attack Christie.

“With this guilty plea, the people of New Jersey have more reason to be skeptical of Gov. Christie’s leadership style built upon bullying and retaliation,” he said in a statement.

The state legislative panel released thousands of pages of documents related to the scandal in early 2014, including emails between Wildstein and Bridget Anne Kelly, Christie’s deputy chief of staff at the time.

“Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” Kelly wrote at 7:34 a.m. on Aug. 13, 2013. “Got it,” Wildstein replied at 7:35 a.m.

On Sept. 8, Baroni, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority, was forwarded an email from Wildstein to Robert Durando, the general manager of the George Washington Bridge.

“Will be at bridge early Monday am to view new lane test,” Wildstein wrote in the email.

Durando responded a day later, telling Wildstein that the police chief of Fort Lee was not happy with the new traffic pattern, which apparently caught the city off guard.

Wildstein resigned from his position with the Port Authority in December 2013, and according to the Times, he has told people in Christie’s administration that he and the governor discussed the lane closings when they happened, which Christie has denied.

U.S. District Judge Susan Wigenton, a George W. Bush appointee, has been assigned the cases.