Two former aides to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie have been found guilty on all nine counts in the so-called Bridgegate trial. The officials knowingly closed the access lanes to the George Washington Bridge in September of 2013, creating an enormous traffic jam for four days–doing so only to punish a mayor who wouldn’t endorse Governor Christie in his bid for reelection. The recent verdict may also create some issues for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who has made Christie an important member of his campaign team.

The aides are Bridget Kelly, former deputy chief of staff for Christie, and Bill Baroni, the former Deputy Executive Director at the Port Authority. The charges against them include conspiracy, fraud, and misapplication of public resources. Sentencing is scheduled for February 21, and according to NBC News, both face up to 86 years in prison if convicted. Although the actual sentences will likely be much shorter.

When Mark Sokolich, the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee, New Jersey, did not endorse Christie in 2013, his town was punished with gridlock. Two out of three lanes leading to the George Washington Bridge were closed, jamming up traffic on the world’s busiest bridge. As a result of the closures, a commute that normally took 30 minutes ended up lasting four hours.

This caused extreme delays for emergency calls–one 91-year-old woman reportedly died because an ambulance didn’t make it to her in time. Children were stuck on the buses and couldn’t get to school. David Wildstein, a Christie appointee at the Port Authority who resigned due to his involvement in the scheme, said that Mayor Sokolich asked Baroni for help because kids couldn’t get to school. After learning that, Wildstein texted an unidentified person saying they were “children of Buono voters,” referring to Christie’s opponent in the election. Amidst the traffic, a toddler was lost and countless people were late for work and appointments.

Remember when Chris Christie led the “lock her up” chants at the GOP convention? #Bridgegate https://t.co/4wAHJVc8sF pic.twitter.com/xUDSEOup4z

— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) November 4, 2016

While Chris Christie continues to argue that he had no knowledge of the scheme, both prosecution and defense attorneys presented evidence that he knew about it beforehand. Kelly and Baroni testified that they discussed the lane closings with Christie as they were happening and Wildstein said that he told the governor about it when he saw him at a 9/11 memorial service. Even Donald Trump, who appointed Chris Christie to serve as the chair of his Transition Team, has said Christie “totally knew about” the plans to close the lanes.

During the Bridgegate trial, Kelly’s defense painted her as a helpless scapegoat who just did as she was told. But the jury apparently didn’t buy it. Kelly was the one who infamously emailed Wildstein, “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee” before the lanes were closed. And after hearing about school children who were stuck on buses, she texted Wildstein, “Is it wrong that I am smiling?” In exchanges revealed during the trial, Baroni and Wildstein also referred to Mayor Sokoloch as “Serbia,” although he is actually of Croatian descent.

While Chris Christie was never charged for any potential involvement, the episode will have very negative consequences for his political career. His approval rate in New Jersey currently stands at 21 percent, a record low.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Last month, a former firefighter and activist lodged a complaint against New Jersey Governor Chris Christie for his inaction in the Bridgegate scandal. On Thursday, a Bergen County judge signed a criminal summons against Christie, a Republican, finding probable cause to justify further investigation into Christie’s role in the lane closures of the George Washington Bridge in 2013. “I’m satisfied that there’s probable cause to believe that an event of official misconduct was caused by Gov. Christie,” Judge Roy McGeady said. “I’m going to issue the summons.”

The case will now move to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, where a Christie-appointed prosecutor will determine whether there is enough evidence to indict the governor, and send the case to a grand jury.

Bill Brennan filed the complaint against Christie last month, when former Port Authority official David Wildstein testified that Christie was told about the Bridgegate plot two days before it played out. Wildstein, who pleaded guilty for his own role in the scheme, said Christie laughed about the plan when he was informed of it while at a 9/11 memorial service.

Brennan argued that Christie’s inaction in the incident–which was potentially political retribution for the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee, who refused to back Christie’s reelection bid in 2013–cost New Jersey taxpayers millions of dollars, and qualifies as second-degree official misconduct, punishable by five to 10 years in prison.

Christie spokesman Brian Murray called it a “dishonorable complaint filed by a known serial complainant and political activist with a history of abusing the judicial system,” in a statement to NBC News. Brennan unsuccessfully sued the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office in 2014, when he argued the names of bidders for baseball memorabilia seized during a drug arrest should be made public.

Currently, a former Christie aide and a former Port Authority deputy are on the third week of trial at a federal court in Newark. Previous investigations into the scandal have failed to produce any explicitly damaging evidence of Christie’s involvement. But in August, text messages sent by two former aides to Christie hinted that he may have been cognizant of Bridgegate. While watching Christie tell reporters he had no knowledge of the lane closings, one aide sent a text to the other, saying “he just flat out lied.”

In his statement, Murray maintains Christie “had no knowledge of the lane realignments either before they happened or while they were happening,” and vowed to appeal the ruling. Christie is set to appear in court on October 24.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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