By Shayna Jacobs
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT — Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial of a suspended Manhattan judge accused of using illegal contributions in her successful 2008 campaign for the bench.
Surrogate’s Court Judge Nora Anderson, 57, won election but was suspended after being charged with lying on financial disclosure forms, claiming $250,000 in donations were her own contributions.
Prosecutors said the source of the money was really Seth Rubenstein, 82, a trusts-and-estates lawyer and former colleague of Anderson's.
The maximum amount a non-candidate was allowed to contribute in that campaign was $33,122.50, according to the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
A month before the primary election, Anderson "was running low on money and did not have sufficient funds to pay for the printing and mailing of campaign materials or to pay people to work on Primary Day," the DA’s office announced when the pair was indicted on Dec. 10, 2008.
They each face up to four years in prison if convicted of the top charge, a class E felony.
