A prosecutor in Upstate New York has admitted to a rather unorthodox past:
Mark Suben, the Cortland County district attorney, said today he acted in pornographic movies in the 1970s.
In a 3 p.m. news conference today, he admitted
that he lied about his history to The Post-Standard and other news operations in the days before the Nov. 6 election. He was re-elected to a second term.
He said he would continue as district attorney. After he was done, he walked out without responding to reporters’ questions.
Suben is a Democrat. He defeated Republican defense attorney Keith Dayton 9,815-7,507, according to unofficial results.
Speaking from a conference room in his private-practice law office, he read a statement and said he would take no questions. His wife was in the room.
He talked about his time handling the criminal cases of youths “because it has been my experience that they can become productive members of the community.”
He continued:
“I know this firsthand. I used bad judgment myself in my youth. Recently, materials have been circulated alleging (indicating) that I was an actor in the adult film industry years ago in New York.
“Those allegations are true. I was an actor in adult films in the early 1970s. I also acted in other venues, off-Broadway, soap operas.
“A few weeks ago, when asked, I denied this to members of the press. I regret that and I apologize. I was shocked to be confronted by this so many years later.
“I was embarrassed for my family and friends who have stood by me. I also denied my actions to my family, my friends and my staff. After that brief period of my life, I found my calling in the law, particularly in prosecution, and have dedicated my life and my career to doing what I’ve been elected to do – protecting my home community.
“I will continue to do that. I cannot defend my bad judgment, both my involvement years ago and my denial of it recently.”
The issue got forced when someone posted a YouTube video that claimed to reveal Suben’s history, saying that he appeared in porn movies under another name. WSTM, Channel 3, posted to its website today a story based on the video.
Well, everyone had to start out somewhere.
