Ruling on Councilman Jim Graham triggers criticism of D.C. ethics board

The opinion from the new D.C. Board of Ethics and Government Accountability was blistering: D.C. Councilman Jim Graham had “committed one or more violations of the District of Columbia code of conduct” when he tied his vote on the city’s lottery contract to a Metro development project.

But despite unanimously issuing a ruling that spent much of its 27 pages attacking Graham, the ethics board closed its investigation because of constitutional concerns that it could not punish Graham for his conduct.