State Liquor Authority Chairman Daniel Boyle has been replaced by an Assistant Attorney General from Buffalo named Dennis Rosen, Governor Paterson's office announced late yesterday. Paterson's press release did not explain the reasons for replacing Boyle, a former Syracuse police chief with a reputation as a straight shooter, but the casual observer might assume it has something to do with the scandal engulfing the SLA's Harlem office, where employees are accused of soliciting bribes to expedite the license application process. But Boyle's dismissal likely has its roots in last fall's very public tangle with an aide to Governor Paterson, former State Senator Carl Andrews. You'll recall that Boyle accused Andrews of trying to "intimidate" him into voting to renew the liquor license for the felonious Cipriani family. The other two SLA Commissioners were able to overrule Boyle to approve the license (and were coincidentally given some nice state-owned cars around the same time), but Boyle went to the Post, and Andrews was forced to step down in the subsequent uproar. Now, it seems, it's payback time. more ›

The head of the State Liquor Authority is telling the Post that an aide to Governor Paterson tried to intimidate him last summer into voting to renew liquor licenses for nine restaurants owned by the Ciprianis. You'll recall that the Cipriani empire—which includes the Rainbow Room—was jeopardized earlier this year when patriarch Arrigo Capriani and his son Giuseppe pleaded guilty to tax evasion. Felons are prohibited from holding liquor licenses in New York State, but the SLA voted 2-1 for renewal, with Chairman Daniel Boyle casting the lone dissent. Now he's come forward to say, "There's no question there was an attempt to intimidate me," made by Paterson's aide (and former state Senator) Carl Andrews, who allegedly told Boyle, "People here [in the Governor's office] are who you answer to." more ›