Defendant Allegedly Overbilled Hours And Travel Expenses He Charged To Legal Programs Benefiting Children And Indigent

Last week, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced the arrest and four-count indictment of attorney John D. Cadore on charges of Larceny and Scheme to Defraud. Cadore is accused of overbilling the New York State Supreme Court’s Attorneys for Children program and the Broome County Assigned Counsel program by nearly $11,000. Cadore, who was one of the highest billers to the Attorneys for Children program in the Third Judicial Department, submitted invoices totaling $747,139 for the two programs between January 1, 2009, and September 30, 2011. An audit conducted by the Office of Court Administration (OCA) Inspector General revealed approximately 36 days on which Cadore billed more than 24 hours in a single day between the two programs.

“Individuals who steal hard-earned taxpayer dollars undermine trust in government and must be held accountable,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “No one is above the law, no matter how powerful or well connected, which is why my office has prosecuted more than 50 people in public corruption cases. When an individual illegally obtains funds for personal enrichment, it deprives people in need and all taxpayers of precious public resources.”

Cadore was arraigned before the Honorable Martin Smith today in Broome County Court. The four-count indictment charges Cadore with two counts of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, one count of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, and one count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree. The defendant faces a maximum sentence of 2 1/3 to 7 years in prison.

In addition to overbilling hours, Cadore double-billed travel expenses to court on approximately 187 occasions, court papers allege. OCA rules require an attorney who appears in court on more than one case at a time to bill for travel on one case or divide the time between two or more cases.

The Attorney General thanks Auditor Aric Andrejko, Senior Auditor George Danyluk, and Inspector General Sherrill Spatz of the Office of Court Administration Inspector General’s Office for their invaluable cooperation and assistance in this investigation.

Assistant Attorney General Bridget Holohan Scally and Assistant Attorney General Colleen Glavin, both of the Public Integrity Bureau, are prosecuting the case. The Public Integrity Bureau is led by Bureau Chief Daniel Cort and Deputy Bureau Chief Stacy Aronowitz. The Public Integrity Bureau is part of the Criminal Justice Division led by Executive Deputy Attorney General for Criminal Justice Kelly Donovan. The prosecutors were assisted by Investigations Bureau Investigator David Buske, with support from Deputy Bureau Chief Antoine Karam and Bureau Chief Dominick Zarrella of the Investigations Bureau.

The charges are accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.