OAKLAND -- Now several years old, the sprawling federal corruption probe of state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata has spurred him to spend more than $1 million on legal defense, clouded his two decades in public life and swept up close associates and his adult children.
The investigation into the East Bay lawmaker's political and business affairs has largely operated out of sight in recent years, although FBI agents have searched his home and his son's.
But public records, subpoenas and interviews with officials and others contacted by the FBI show that it has remained very much alive.
A grand jury has heard testimony and issued subpoenas to numerous businesses and government agencies that dealt with Perata. And agents have talked to potential witnesses and collected records about many issues championed by the senator.
These include bond measures for seismic work on a Bay Area transit system, billboards along freeways and federal approval of an airport roadway.
One common theme is that campaign contributors and associates often stood to gain from Perata's actions, and subpoenas and the FBI's questions suggest that the government has been looking for any money that may have illegally flowed back to him or has not been properly disclosed.
Beyond pledging to cooperate with authorities, Perata has maintained silence, although his representatives have questioned whether partisan politics may have fueled scrutiny of one of the state's most powerful Democrats.
"This investigation is unfortunate . . . unfair and wholly arbitrary," said his spokesman, Jason Kinney. "We are confident that he has always operated appropriately and in the end this will be resolved in his favor. . . . There is no there there."
One political expert says that such a long investigation cries out for resolution. "I think it is time for the feds to fish or cut bait," said Barbara O'Connor, director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media at Cal State Sacramento.
Federal officials will not discuss their investigation, but legal experts say one question is whether Perata enriched himself through a quid pro quo deal. They also say corruption cases can take years to develop.
"Allegations swirl around political figures all the time, and the U.S. attorney's offices and the FBI look into some of them and often conclude there is nothing to do," said former federal prosecutor Rory Little, a professor at UC's Hastings College of the Law. "And new allegations come in . . . and they look again. . . . You do not go up against a prominent politician until you have proof beyond a reasonable doubt."
Political observers say the investigation does not appear to have weakened Perata's leadership, although an indictment would dramatically change that.
"It may be chewing him up psychologically," said Bruce Cain, director of the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies. "But it does not seem to be hindering him in his role."
Each FBI sighting stirs rumors of impending indictment.
Agents who were apparently looking into Perata's relationship with developers discreetly met Aug. 27 at a coffee shop away from the state Capitol with Peter Detwiler, staff director of a Senate committee. Detwiler said agents had a memo from a businessman that alluded to information Perata got from Detwiler. The FBI was looking for the 1999 letter containing that information.
"Perata asked some general land use questions . . . not with reference to any project," Detwiler recalled, adding that such inquiries were routine.
Perata, a onetime teacher, rose from Alameda County supervisor to state legislator, became a prodigious fundraiser, developed a lucrative consulting business and helped his friends get political work. He inspires loyalty among allies and cultivates a roguish image. He kept a cardboard cutout of his favorite TV character, Tony Soprano, in his office.
"He has become like the Godfather, the go-to guy in the East Bay," said developer and contributor Ron Cowan, who says he testified before the grand jury. "He understands authority and power, and he will listen to all sides and say, 'This is the way it will be.' "
In 2000, the senator tried to help local government bodies speed federal approval of a roadway to connect Oakland International Airport and a business park partly owned by Cowan.
Records subpoenaed in 2005 said Perata urged the agencies to hire an advocate in Washington. They later paid $135,000 to lobbyist Dawson Mathis. The FBI evidently wanted to know whether Perata had received a kickback.
But Mathis was recommended by Perata's predecessor, John Burton, according to Burton and Cowan. And Mathis said, "I certainly did not send any money to Sen. Perata."
Federal interest in Perata appears to date to 2003, when the estranged boyfriend of an Oakland lobbyist who was a former Perata aide said in a court filing that the FBI was investigating her relationship with politicians.
