Yesterday, Patricia Stackrow, former State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno’s ex-secretary, took the stand in Bruno’s corruption trial. She received an immunity deal from prosecutors in exchange for her testimony, because it had been revealed she was stealing from her former boss. Turns out, on top of her $100,000-a-year salary, she was dipping into Bruno’s personal checking account in “retaliation for the way he treated me at times.” Stackrow said that Bruno was “demeaning, very degrading” to her during her many years of service to him, but she couldn’t remember how much money she took or how long ago she started. (Hint, everybody: That means it was a lot, and it started a loooong time ago.) The running theft and her immunity deal were revealed by prosecutors during the trial, which set Bruno off. The airing of what he described as a personal matter was “despicable,” he told reporters afterward. Then he made the face pictured at left.
