Milford Resident Files Ethics Complaint, Claims Attorney Ties to Casino Developer

A Milford resident said he filed a complaint with the state Ethics Commission this week, contending the attorney hired to represent the town in its review of the Foxwoods Massachusetts casino potentially has a conflict of interest because he previously worked with the developer.

Tim Spino, a Milford resident, said he filed the complaint concerning the professional relationship between attorney Cid Froelich, who represents the town on casino matters, and Scott Butera, who is chief executive of Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, a partner in the Foxwoods Massachusetts casino proposal. Froelich is a partner in Shefsky & Froelich of Chicago, hired by the town selectmen this spring to represent the town in its consideration of the casino.

Spino, who announced his action Wednesday in a casino informational meeting, said the town is not being well-represented by the consultants hired by Shefsky & Froelich — who are paid for by Foxwoods, as is Shefsky & Froelich.

"The investment group trying to come into our town is paying your fees," Spino said Wednesday to Froelich, who served as the meeting moderator. "This group includes a key executive that you had a past history with. Over the past four weeks, we have seen information that has not been accurate yet we are told to believe what is being presented."

A spokesman for the Massachusetts Ethics Commission said Thursday he could not speak about any filings made with the state agency, because the complaint process is private.

The Commission oversees enforcement of the state's conflict of interest and financial disclosure laws. The conflict of interest law applies to town and state employees, but also to private individuals who have been appointed to act on behalf of a town government, according to the commission's site.

Spino first publicly queried Froelich about his relationship with Butera on July 24, during a question-and-answer period on the social impacts of the casino. The line of questioning resulted in a protracted, testy, back-and-forth between him and Froelich.

At that meeting, Froelich said he served on the board of directors of Trump Entertainment at the same time that Butera was an executive vice-president at the corporation. But he said he had no relationship with him, outside the two to three board meetings that Butera attended. He hadn't seen him since, Froelich said, and never talked to Butera again before the Foxwoods Massachusetts project began.

"I had very limited interaction with him," Froelich said.

Spino argued the relationship would have been more extensive, and cited documentation that said Froelich served on an executive committee which would have had authority over numerous Trump initiatives. "With all of this, you expect the people of this town to accept that you or your law firm can be objective with your advice to us on this casino issue?" Spino said.

Butera did not attend the meeting on July 24. He did attend this week, and when asked by Spino about his relationship with Froelich, said he reported to Donald Trump at that time. 

Outside the meeting, Spino said he did not file the ethics commission complaint as a result of last week's argument, and said he had already prepared the documentation before that meeting took place.

But he did send a copy of the video of the meeting, including his exchange with Froelich, to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, which is evaluating an initial filing by the Foxwoods Massachusetts team for a resort casino license.

Town counsel Gerry Moody, who helped bring Shefsky & Froelich to the attention of selectmen, spoke last week to the strengths of hiring a law firm with experience on both sides of the casino development line. Shefsky and Froelich, in addition to representing Mlford, has represented the cities of Springfield and Taunton, as well as numerous other communities.

It helps Milford that the casino attorney has experience in both developing casinos and in representing towns considering casino development, Moody said.

This week, Moody said the conflict of interest issue is a non-issue. "There is not even an arguable conflict of interest. There's no basis," he said. "I'm negotiating with people I know, all the time."