The congressional campaign of House Speaker Christopher G. Donovan, D-Meriden, filed an amended campaign finance report tonight showing an unpaid debt of $84,668.71 to law firm Day Pitney for the internal investigation conducted by its partner, former U.S. Attorney Stanley Twardy.
The campaign failed to report the debt in the report filed last week for the period July 1 through July 25, calling it an oversight. With the $35,754 paid to the accounting firm of Blum Shapiro, the total cost of the investigation was $120,422.71.
For $120,422 and change, the Twardy report finding Donovan was unaware of illegal campaign contributions produced some favorable headlines, including one that the campaign featured in a television commercial: “Independent probe clears Donovan.”
The U.S. attorney’s office has neither pronounced Donovan in the clear, nor has it accused him of wrongdoing.