Research


Scope and Content Note

This series contains correspondence, memoranda, transcripts of hearings, testimonies and interviews, reports and findings of the New York State Commission of Investigation, copies of court decisions and grand jury reports, newspaper clippings, and other records relating to investigations brought to the attention of the Governor's office. These investigations relate to matters concerning the conduct of public officials, the management and affairs of any department or public agency of the state, proper enforcement of the laws of the state, or any matter concerning public peace, public safety, and public justice that the governor had the authority to investigate. Notable investigations include the Mafia meeting at Apalachin, NY, the parole of Joseph Lanza, a Ballston Spa murder, a Brooklyn cave-in, the Corning police chief, funeral homes, Westfield State Farm, and numerous county and municipal government officials.

The series includes records both of investigations pursued by the Commission of Investigation, and also of those that were closed because of a lack of basis for an investigation or prosecution, because the case was transferred to another agency, or because the complainants brought action of their own through the courts. The series also includes general records of investigations, as well as records pertaining to the establishment of the Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Commission of Investigation.