History of the attorney general

The office of attorney general, now considered such a prize by ambitious politicians like Susan Bysiewicz and others, wasn’t even a full-time job until the 1980s.

It’s also the only Connecticut constitutional office that doesn’t have its roots in Colonial times. We have had governors, deputy or lieutenant governors, treasurers and secretaries of the state since those offices were established by the Fundamental Orders of the Connecticut Colony in 1639 and there have even been comptrollers since 1786.

But the Legislature didn’t establish the office of attorney general until the turn of the century — the 20th century — after governors and other state officials had been complaining for decades that it was time for the state to have its own lawyer instead of farming the job out to private law firms.

In 1898, the Legislature passed the law that has been so troubling to Bysiewicz, with its requirement that “The attorney general shall be an elector of this state and an attorney-in-fact of at least 10 years active practice at the bar of this court.â€

The first attorney general, Charles Phelps, came to the office on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. He had a secretary and was paid $4,000 a year. The Legislature didn’t add two assistant attorneys general until 1927 and didn’t get around to making the state’s lawyer a full-time job until 1982 when it raised his salary from $30,000 to $50,000.

Consumerism was all the rage in the 1970s and early ’80s and state Sen. Joe Lieberman, who became the first full-time AG in 1983, was the first to make the attorney general the people’s lawyer, as he launched crusades with a consumerist flavor.

Lieberman also made the activities of his office very public, quickly learning the value of using announcements of legal actions as photo opportunities and after only five years, he ran successfully for the U.S. Senate. Clarine Nardi Riddle completed the two years left in Lieberman’s second term and was succeeded by Richard Blumenthal, who made the people’s lawyer into an art form as he held the job for nearly two decades.

There have been 23 attorneys general since 1899 and many of them saw the office as a springboard to judgeships as governors rewarded hard-working attorneys general with lifetime jobs. Robert Killian, a rare exception, moved on to be Ella Grasso’s lieutenant governor but then made the mistake of challenging his boss’s second-term ambitions and Grasso defeated him in a primary.

Should Bysiewicz survive the self-inflicted wounds she has suffered and succeed Blumenthal, she will be the first woman elected attorney general. (Nardi Riddle was an interim appointee to complete Lieberman’s term when he went to the Senate.) A victory by Bysiewicz or one of her challengers, former Senate Majority Leader and gubernatorial candidate George Jepsen or state Rep. Cameron Staples, would also continue a 52-year Democratic winning streak for the office.

The last Republican elected attorney general was John Bracken, a Hartford Republican who may also have the distinction of being the last Hartford Republican, a nearly extinct species, elected to a major office of any kind. Bracken was elected in 1954 when Democrat Abe Ribicoff won his first term as governor by a slender 3,000 votes and couldn’t carry the rest of the Democratic ticket with him.

Republicans hoping to be the one to snap that Democratic streak are state Sen. Andrew Roraback, a respected and moderate legislator known for never having missed a vote in a 16-year career, John Pavia, the state party’s finance chairman, and Martha Dean, a conservative who lost to Blumenthal in 2002 by 300,000 votes and could be the only woman in the race if Bysiewicz falters.

Dean didn’t get off to a very successful start when she criticized Blumenthal’s anti- business, “gotcha†lawsuits but couldn’t provide a single example when asked by consumer reporter George Gombossy what Blumenthal suits she wouldn’t have filed.

“Just a suggestion,†Gombossy suggested, “when someone accuses someone of improprieties, it’s always a good idea to have at least one example.â€

Dick Ahles is a retired journalist from Simsbury. E-mail him at dahles@hotmail.com.

Latest News

Swift House committee learns of potential buyer at first meeting

Swift House in Kent.

By Ruth Epstein

KENT — The fate of the Swift House is once again front and center after the newly formed Swift House Investigation Committee held its first meeting Tuesday, Feb. 24 — and learned that a local attorney is interested in buying the historic property.

At the meeting’s outset, committee member Marge Smith said local attorney Anthony Palumbo has expressed interest in purchasing the building. “He loves it and said he’d be honored to buy it and maybe lease part of it back to the town. He would be OK with a conservation easement.” She said he supports several previously proposed uses, including a welcome center and exhibition space.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sharon median home price rises to $710,000 as inventory tightens

119 Amenia Union Road — A four-bedroom, 2.5-bath home built in 1872 on 4.42 acres recently sold for $522,500.

Photo by Christine Bates

SHARON — The 12-month trailing median price for a single-family home in Sharon increased to $710,000 for the period ending Jan. 31, 2026 — its highest point since September 2024 as home values across much of Connecticut continued to edge higher.

The figure marks an increase from the $560,000 median recorded for the 12 months ending Jan. 31, 2025, and from $645,000 for the comparable period ending Jan. 31, 2024. While January and February are typically slow months, the 12-month rolling figure reflects a broader reset.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kent's towering snowman honors Robbie Kennedy

Jeff Kennedy visits the 20-foot-high snowman located in the Golden Falcon lot in Kent that was created in honor of his late brother Robbie Kennedy.

Photo by Ruth Epstein

KENT – Snowman Robbie stands prominently in the center of town, just as its namesake — longtime Kent resident Robbie Kennedy — did for so many years.

The 20-foot-high frozen sculpture pays tribute to Kennedy, who died Feb. 9, at the age of 71. A beloved member of the community, he was a familiar sight riding his bicycle along town roads waving to all he passed. Many people knew him from his days working at Davis IGA, the local supermarket. He was embraced by the Kent Fire Department, where he was named an active emergency member and whose members chipped in to buy him a new bike, and by the Kent School football team where coach Ben Martin made him his assistant. At Templeton Farms senior apartments, he was the helpful tenant, always eager to assist his neighbors.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Help Wanted

PART-TIME CARE-GIVER NEEDED: possibly LIVE-IN. Bright private STUDIO on 10 acres. Queen Bed, En-Suite Bathroom, Kitchenette & Garage. SHARON 407-620-7777.

The Salisbury Association’s Land Trust seeks part-time Land Steward: Responsibilities include monitoring easements and preserves, filing monitoring reports, documenting and reporting violations or encroachments, and recruiting and supervising volunteer monitors. The Steward will also execute preserve and trail stewardship according to Management Plans and manage contractor activity. Up to 10 hours per week, compensation commensurate with experience. Further details and requirements are available on request. To apply: Send cover letter, resume, and references to info@salisburyassociation.org. The Salisbury Association is an equal opportunity employer.

Keep ReadingShow less
To save birds, plant for caterpillars

Fireweed attracts the fabulous hummingbird sphinx moth.

Photo provided by Wild Seed Project

You must figure that, as rough as the cold weather has been for us, it’s worse for wildlife. Here, by the banks of the Housatonic, flocks of dark-eyed juncos, song sparrows, tufted titmice and black-capped chickadees have taken up residence in the boxwood — presumably because of its proximity to the breakfast bar. I no longer have a bird feeder after bears destroyed two versions and simply throw chili-flavored birdseed onto the snow twice a day. The tiny creatures from the boxwood are joined by blue jays, cardinals and a solitary flicker.

These birds will soon enough be nesting, and their babies will require a nonstop diet of caterpillars. This source of soft-bodied protein makes up more than 90 percent of native bird chicks’ diets, with each clutch consuming between 6,000 and 9,000 caterpillars before they fledge. That means we need a lot of caterpillars if we want our bird population to survive.

Keep ReadingShow less
Stephanie Haboush Plunkett and the home for American illustration

Stephanie Haboush Plunkett

L. Tomaino
"The field of illustration is very close to my heart"
— Stephanie Plunkett

For more than three decades, Stephanie Haboush Plunkett has worked to elevate illustration as a serious art form. As chief curator and Rockwell Center director at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, she has helped bring national and international attention to an art form long dismissed as merely commercial.

Her commitment to illustration is deeply personal. Plunkett grew up watching her father, Joseph Haboush, an illustrator and graphic designer, work late into the night in his home studio creating art and hand-lettered logos for package designs, toys and licensed-character products for the Walt Disney Co. and other clients.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.