Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) abused her executive power when she fired her public safety commissioner this year in the midst of an intense effort to oust her former brother-in-law from the state police force, a special prosecutor has concluded.
Palin, the Republican vice presidential nominee, had been accused of dismissing Public Safety Commissioner Walter Monegan, a career law enforcement official, after he rebuffed attempts by Palin, her husband Todd, and cabinet officials to reopen an investigation into Palin's brother-in-law, state Trooper Mike Wooten. After his firing, Monegan said he believed that comments in conversations and e-mails from Palin, her husband Todd and other state officials were an attempt to get him to fire Wooten.
