Sarcone hit with ethics complaint after retaliating against Times Union

Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York John Sarcone III’s troubles aren’t over yet. After the Times Union reported he was using a false address in Albany to comply with residency requirements, he removed Times Union reporters from press lists, and now good government groups and First Amendment advocates have filed an ethics complaint against the Trump appointee, calling for an investigation into his conduct. 

On Aug. 11, Reinvent Albany, Demand Progress Education Fund and Freedom of the Press Foundation filed an ethics complaint with the Attorney Grievance Committee for the Third Judicial Department, claiming that Sarcone may have violated several rules during his tenure. They allege that Sarcone may have failed to provide competent representation, made statements that likely could have caused material prejudice, engaged in conduct resulting in dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation and engaged in conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice. The allegations stem from the Times Union debacle concerning his place of residence and a claim that he overstated an incident where a man threatened him with a knife. Sarcone pushed for an attempted murder charge before the Albany County District Attorney’s office lessened the charge to second-degree menacing. 

This is at least the second ethics complaint filed against Sarcone. The acting U.S. attorney already has a separate ethics complaint against him stemming from the residency issue, filed by the Campaign for Accountability earlier this month. Sarcone’s office declined to comment. 

“A prosecutor who so flagrantly disregards his ethical and professional obligations and tramples over the First Amendment rights of the press should not be empowered to enforce the laws of our nation,” said Kate Oh, special advisor to the Demand Progress Education Fund. “Sarcone’s professional history is littered with red flags and must be investigated. No less than the public’s faith in the rule of law is at stake.”

Sarcone ran for Westchester County district attorney as a Republican in 2024 but lost to eventual winner Susan Cacace, a Democrat. He was later nominated by the Trump Administration to be U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York, which covers the Capital region, North Country, Central New York and parts of the Southern Tier and Hudson Valley. But neither the U.S. Senate nor federal judges confirmed him, so the Trump Administration made him a special attorney for the region, devoid of term limits and traditional oversight. 

Questions were eventually raised about his residence, since he had lived and campaigned in Westchester just a year before being named U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York. The Times Union reported that Sarcone’s listed address was a boarded-up building. Following that report, Sarcone ordered his staff to remove Times Union journalists from the office’s press distribution list.

The new ethics complaint stems primarily from Sarcone’s retaliation against the Times Union. It comes at a time when news outlets are facing increased scrutiny and, in some cases, hostility from government officials. Newsday is suing Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman after he removed them as the county’s paper of record. Public media is seeing funding cuts, with Rep. Elise Stefanik referring to the organizations as “stenographers for the Democratic Party.” A Daily News reporter was banned from New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ press conference after complaining about not getting to ask questions for months. In Washington, D.C., The Associated Press saw its White House access revoked after it refused to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. 

“Mr. Sarcone's flagrant misuse of his authority to retaliate against the Albany Times-Union and his repeated, well-documented dishonesty are completely unacceptable, unethical and violate basic democratic norms and rules of professional conduct,” Reinvent Albany Executive Director John Kaehny said in a statement. “The Times Union is one of the most respected newspapers and civic institutions in New York, and it's chilling to see it attacked by an unethical U.S. Attorney with a personal grievance.”