N.Y.’s Spitzer linked to prostitution ring

Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who rode a steamroller of moral rectitude to New York’s governor’s mansion, apologized today after a report linked him to a prostitution ring.

At a televised news conference with his wife by his side, Spitzer did not deny the report but refused to discuss specifics.

“Today, I want to briefly address a private matter,” he said. “I have acted in a way that violates my obligations to my family and that violates my, or any, sense of right and wrong. I apologize first and most importantly to my family. I apologize to the public whom I promised better.

“I have disappointed and failed to live up to the standard I expected of myself,” he said. “I must now dedicate some time to regain the trust of my family.”

The New York Times was the first to link Spitzer to the prostitution ring. The newspaper, citing people familiar with the matter who said they believe that Spitzer was identified in court papers as a client of the Emperors Club VIP, reportedly a high-end prostitution ring.

Four people allegedly connected to Emperors Club VIP were arrested last week. Prosecutors said the defendants arranged connections between wealthy men and more than 50 prostitutes in New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Miami, London and Paris.

The website of the Emperors Club VIP displays photographs of scantily clad women with their faces hidden, along with hourly rates, depending on whether the prostitutes were rated with one diamond, the lowest ranking, or seven diamonds, the highest. The most highly ranked prostitutes cost $5,500 an hour, prosecutors said.

Spitzer, who was sworn in as New York’s 54th governor on Jan. 1, 2007, set himself up as an example of probity, pledging ethics reform and an end the backroom deals that marked the usual modus operandi of Albany. He is a product of Ivy League schools and is married with three children.

Other politicians around the country have been named in sex scandals, but none has built a reputation of being purer than any other political figure and went so far as Spitzer to curry an image as a crime fighter. He was often called a “straight arrow,” and compared to Eliot Ness, who brought down Al Capone. Time magazine named him “Crusader of the Year” when he was attorney general.

Because of that, today’s announcement carries a large element of schadenfreude for the numerous enemies Spitzer has made among Albany politicians, his fellow Democrats and social elites across the state.

A first-term Democrat, Spitzer, 48, gained national prominence when as attorney general, he strenuously pursued Wall Street wrongdoing. As attorney general for eight years, his organized crime task force prosecuted prostitution rings.

In a 2004 case, Spitzer spoke with revulsion and anger after announcing the arrest of 16 people for operating a high-end prostitution ring out of Staten Island.

The governor’s aides have been accused of trying to hurt the reputation of Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, the state’s top Republican. That scandal is being investigated by the local district attorney.

Wayne Barrett, a veteran political reporter for the Village Voice, said the damage went beyond Spitzer’s political career and called the news of Spitzer’s alleged involvement in a prostitution ring “an enormous tragedy.”

“He showed great courage in trying to change the power dynamic in Albany, and that’s why he took so much heat last year,” Barrett said, adding that Democratic control of the senate could have broken years of “dysfunctional” government.

Spitzer made gaining control of the state Senate a priority for the Democrats, recently bringing that goal within reach for the first time since 1965. Barrett credited Spitzer with gaining four seats for the Democrats in the Senate since he was elected governor.

“That’s a very, very big change in New York politics,” said Barrett, who was critical of Spitzer during his years as an attorney general but later lauded his efforts as a governor, describing his downfall as “detrimental to the state of New York.”

He added: “The Republicans, I’m sure, are celebrating in Albany today.”

erika.hayasaki@latimes.com

Times staff writer Michael Muskal in Los Angeles contributed to this report.