Pa. legislative ex-aide testifies about affair, sex life at corruption trial for his old boss

Pa. ex-aide discusses sex life in corruption trial

HARRISBURG, Pa. — The intimate details of the sex life of a former state legislative aide became fodder for the jury in a public corruption trial Tuesday as he explained that his affair with an aide ended prematurely because he struggled to perform sexually.

Mike Manzo’s revelation came as a defense attorney confronted him with e-mails to and from then-girlfriend Angela Bertugli that appeared to contradict his earlier testimony by showing their relationship continued well after his May 2005 marriage.

The defense attorney, Dan Raynak, said Manzo changed his story twice, giving jurors something to consider in weighing his credibility.

Manzo and his wife, Rachel Manzo, pleaded guilty last month and are cooperating with prosecutors in the case of former House Democratic Whip Mike Veon and three aides, all of whom are charged with diverting state government money for political gain.

“I had some inability to perform so I was being treated for it,” testified Manzo, the former House Democratic chief of staff. “So it was inappropriate but nothing additional happened.”

Under questioning by Raynak, Manzo told the jury about e-mails he and Bertugli exchanged that showed them making plans to get together behind his wife’s back. He admitted driving a state-owned car to meet with her and sending what Raynak called “love letters on the taxpayers’ dime.”

“It was intimate and it was inappropriate,” Manzo said, who also said he did not consider oral sex to meet the definition of “intimate.” He told Raynak that he continued to deceive his wife long after their marriage, even though he said she is the person with whom he is most truthful.

Leaving the courthouse, Manzo said he was comfortable with his testimony but declined to comment about when his affair ended.

Senior Deputy Attorney General E. Marc Costanzo said at the end of the day that Manzo wasn’t called to testify about his marital affairs.

“The issue is what criminal activity was he involved in,” Costanzo said.

Raynak questioned how candid Manzo was being.

“The relevance is whether or not you’re willing to be candid with the person you’re closest to in the world, and second of all — and more importantly — whether you’re willing to be candid and honest with a jury about when it ended,” Raynak said after the court session.

Veon, Brett Cott, Annamarie Perretta-Rosepink and Stephen Keefer are on trial on theft, conspiracy and conflict of interest charges. Prosecutors say they took part in a scheme to divert public resources for political campaigns and other purposes.

Later Tuesday, former Veon chief of staff Jeff Foreman, a lawyer whose license was suspended by the state Supreme Court in November as a result of his involvement in the case, described for jurors what he knew about the range of election activities that legislative workers did on state time.

He said that included, among other things, raising money, collecting nominating signatures, researching opponents and doling out state-paid bonuses to reward campaign work.

“Foreman’s testimony was a highlight reel of exactly what we say has been going on over there and exactly what we’re required to prove,” Costanzo said.

Foreman, who also pleaded guilty last month, said he fellow legislative employees tried to cover their tracks after news broke in January 2007 that millions of dollars in bonuses had been quietly handed out to employees of the General Assembly.

“Most people were deleting things,” Foreman said. “I certainly deleted e-mails.”

In all, 25 people with ties to the state House have been charged in the investigation into the Legislature’s campaign and financial practices — 15 connected to the Democratic caucus, and 10 tied to the Republican caucus.

Four are on trial, seven have pleaded guilty, one was acquitted in December and 13 await trial.

(This version CORRECTS marriage was in May instead of June.)