Cape and Islands DA fined $5,000 for two ethics violations

The Cape and Islands District Attorney admitted to two separate ethics violations committed shortly after he took office last year — when he issued a press release to “cast himself in a favorable public light” after a car crash and when his staff had first pick of rental apartments belonging to a campaign donor.

Robert J. Galibois paid a $5,000 civil penalty and waived his right to a hearing, the State Ethics Commission announced Wednesday. 

Galibois: “A so-called car accident”

Galibois made an illegal U-turn in his state vehicle in February of last year, according to the ethics commission. Barnstable police issued a warning for making an improper turn, a marked lanes violation, and failure to file an accident report, the commission said.

His office issued a press release a few weeks later, on the DA’s Office letterhead. In that release, Galibois’s staff referred to the alleged U-turn as a three-point turn.

“Another motorist alerted DA Galibois that the other motorist was under the impression that the two cars had come into contact with one another,” the statement at the time said, in part.

The ethics commission said the release “was designed to turn the public narrative of the accident in Galibois’ favor.”

Galibois, a Democrat in his first-term, addressed the conflict of interest violations on his campaign Facebook page on Wednesday.

“I directed my staff to issue a press release in response to numerous media reports to correct and clarify the circumstances of a so-called car accident in which I was involved. This incident occurred in the middle of a workday while I was heading to a meeting in my work car,” Galibois said.

Ethics Commission: Galibois used “resources of his public office to promote” apartments for rent

The commission also said Galibois used his office to promote a campaign donor’s apartments to “a targeted group of desirable prospective tenants, his DA’s Office staff.”

The donor texted Galibois that he wanted to offer his rental apartments to the DA’s staff before advertising them publicly, the ethics commission said. Galibois then shared the apartments in an office-wide email and referred two assistant DAs to the landlord.

Galibois said in a statement that the campaign donor said he typically shares available rentals with police, firefighters, and other public servants first. Galibois said he did not receive any financial benefit from connecting his staff with the donor.

“Knowing that some members in my office were, like so many throughout the Cape and Islands, having difficulty searching for housing, I circulated this opportunity to my staff by way of an office email,” Galibois wrote. “The Ethics Commission found that I should not have used my office email as my action gave my staff advantage in the housing market.”