FRANKFORT — The Executive Branch Ethics Commission has charged former agriculture commissioner Richie Farmer with 42 ethics violations for misusing state funds and state employees during his time in office. The charges, announced by the ethics commission on Monday, include Farmer placing his friends in jobs that had no specified duties and asking them to carry out his personal errands. He allegedly had employees chauffeur him to doctors' appointments and shopping trips as well as build a basketball court on his property. Farmer, a former shooting guard for the University of Kentucky's Wildcats basketball team, faces a $5,000 fine for each count, which amounts to $210,000. Seven employees who worked with Farmer also face ethics charges. And the commission issued an advisory opinion stating that employees must report suspected ethics violations.
