Consultant used others' names in letter-writing blitz to newspaper

[flowomo]

By Jeff Kearns
published October 6th, 2005

Activist and political consultant Richard Salzman liked to sound off about his causes in letters to the editors of Eureka-area newspapers. Other local residents, like R. Trent Williams, Dick Wyatt, and R. Johnson, often backed him up, praising Salzman's points and echoing his jabs at political foes.

Salzman made a name for himself last year by helping Humboldt County
District Attorney Paul Gallegos defeat a recall attempt backed by the timber industry. Salzman also worked on other successful campaigns in the area.

But his star quickly dimmed when a newspaper revealed that all of those like-minded letters penned over several months actually came from Salzman himself. Now, he's under investigation by local authorities and could face criminal charges for violating a state law that makes it a misdemeanor to send phony letters to newspapers.

http://www.capitolweekly.net/news/article.html?article_id=192