Platkin testimony to be postponed

Matt Platkin, Gov. Phil Murphy’s chief counsel, will not testify before the Legislature’s Select Oversight Committee next week due to scheduling conflicts, something that committee has no issue with.

Platkin, according to a source with knowledge of the hearing, will testify at a later date.

An legislative source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told the New Jersey Globe that they have no problem rescheduling Platkin for another date.

The panel is investigating the hiring of Al Alvarez also served as ethics counsel to Gov. Phil Murphy’s transition team.

Five other Murphy administration officials – outgoing chief of staff Pete Cammarano, deputy chief of staff Justin Braz, deputy chief counsel Parimal Garg, chief ethics counsel Heather Taylor, and New Jersey Schools Development Authority executive director Lizette Delgado-Polanco – are expected to testify on Tuesday.

Last week, the committee heard the testimony of Katie Brennan, a Murphy administration official who alleges that Alvarez sexually assaulted her while both were working on the 2017 gubernatorial campaign.

Brennan said that she told Braz of the sexual assault the day after it happened but asked the he keep the issue private.

After the election, Brennan says she asked Braz to alert the transition counsel that Alvarez, the deputy director of personnel for Murphy’s transition, that she had reported the assault to the Hudson County Prosecutor.  She believed that criminal charges against Alvarez were forthcoming.  Brennan asked not to be identified as the victim.

Eventually. the prosecutor declined to charge Alvarez.

Brennan said she later told Platkin and Garg that she had been raped.

In her testimony, Brennan cited news reports that Cammarano also knew about her allegations against Alvarez.

Later, Taylor reached out to Brennan. Because the alleged assault occurred before Alavrez was employed by the state, Taylor said the matter was not under her control, Brennan testified.

Polanco-Delgado, who is also the New Jersey Democratic State Committee vice chair, eventually became Alvarez’s boss when she replaced Charles McKenna at the authority.