A week after taking the oath of office in a Brooklyn steakhouse, Richard Ravitch’s legal status as lieutenant governor remains uncertain now that a Nassau judge has reserved decision on a motion to declare his appointment unconstitutional. Supreme Court Justice William R. LaMarca of Nassau County (See Profile) promised to issue a decision “shortly” in Skelos v. Ravitch, 13426/09, after hearing oral arguments yesterday in Mineola.
Lawyers for Senators Dean G. Skelos, R-Rockville Centre, and Pedro Espada, D-Bronx, who are challenging the appointment, claim Governor David A. Paterson acted outside the scope of any constitutional power in naming a second-in-command (NYLJ, July 15). “I just want Governor Paterson to follow the Constitution,” David Lewis, who represents Mr. Skelos, told the judge. Mr. Lewis claimed state law requires that a lieutenant governor vacancy remain empty until the next election and that arguments by Mr. Paterson that the appointment was done out of concern for the state’s fiscal crisis were pretextual. “Necessity is always the argument for an excess of power [around] the fringes…of tyranny,” he said.
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