FILE - In a Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2011 file photo, former Senate Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., right, speaks before the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. Former U.S. Sen. Domenici is acknowledging he fathered a son outside his marriage three decades ago. Statements released by the New Mexico Republican and the son's mother, Michelle Laxalt, of Alexandria, Va., identify Domenici as the father of Las Vegas lawyer Adam Paul Laxalt, the Albuquerque Journal reported Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Jury finds UNM's renovation of 'The Pit' legal
Published: 06:08:59 PM, Wed 06 March 2013 UTC
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A Santa Fe jury has ruled in favor of a company accused of skimming taxpayers in the $60 million renovation of the University of New Mexico's basketball arena known as "The Pit."
The 10-person jury decided Tuesday that Flintco West LLC didn't violate the Fraud Against Taxpayers Act, which allows a person to sue on behalf of taxpayers when public funds are involved.
The Albuquerque Journal (http://bit.ly/YUSYKG) says plaintiffs' attorneys were seeking about $8.8 million in damages.
Flintco was the contractor chosen to head the remodeling at the Pit from 2009 to 2010.
The suit accused Flintco of manipulating its relationship with UNM President David Schmidly to win the contract.
It also claimed the project would have cost $2.26 million less if a lower bid had been accepted.
Tags:
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