Yeah, Christie would just sail through confirmatio

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5 things to know about new Christie Bridgegate developments

Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media, for NJ.com

Brent Johnson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com By Brent Johnson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

on August 11, 2016 at 6:45 AM, updated August 11, 2016 at 5:01 PM

TRENTON — A court filing Wednesday shed new light on the George Washington Bridge scandal that has dogged Gov. Chris Christie's administration the past three years — including an accusation that the governor lied during a 2013 news conference.

Here are five things to know about the developments:

1. A former aide alleged that Christie 'flat out lied.'

In December 2013, Christie held a news conference as rumors intensified about whether his office was involved in controversial lane closings at the George Washington Bridge that September.

The governor told reporters that senior staffers — including his campaign manager, Bill Stepien — "assured" him that they were not involved.

But on Wednesday, a court filing by former Port Authority Deputy Executive Director Bill Baroni showed Christina Genovese Renna, the former director of Christie's Intergovernmental Affairs Office, sent a text message during the news conference to a Christie campaign staffer saying the governor was lying.

Ex-aide: Christie lied during Bridgegate news conference

Christina Genovese Renna wrote to a campaign staffer that the governor lied during a press conference Dec. 13, 2013.

"Are you listening?" Renna asked the staffer, Pete Sheridan. "He just flat out lied about senior staff and Stepien not being involved."

Sheridan replied: "Gov. is doing fine. Holding his own up there."

Renna responded: "Yes. But he lied. And if emails are found with the subpoena or CCFG (Chris Christie for Governor) emails are uncovered in discovery if it comes to that, it could be bad."

Baroni is one of three former Christie allies charged with orchestrating the lane closings in a political payback scheme. But Christie has long maintained that he did not have full knowledge of the plot until months after it was carried out.

Saying he was "misled" by his staff, Christie apologized to New Jerseyans for the incident during a nearly two-hour news conference in January 2014. He has not been charged.

2. Christie denied the allegations of lying.

Speaking to reporters after appearing on a sports-talk radio show in New York City on Wednesday morning, Christie vehemently denied Renna's accusation.

"I absolutely dispute it," the governor said. "It's ridiculous. It's nothing new. There's nothing new to talk about."

3. Renna is accused of deleting the text messages.

According to the filing, evidence "indicates" Renna deleted 54 days of text messages to Sheridan — and no one else — after the state Legislature began issuing subpoenas in its investigation of the lane closings.

When Renna testified before a special legislative committee in 2014, she did not mention the messages.

Her attorney, Henry Klingeman, said Renna would "answer questions publicly when she testifies at the upcoming trial — not before."

4. Wisniewski and Weinberg want answers.

The former co-chairs of the legislative committee are calling on the state Attorney General's Office to investigate whether Renna should be charged with intentional destruction of evidence.

"If that doesn't amount to the intentional destruction of evidence, I don't know what does," said state Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Middlesex), who ran the panel with state Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen).

5. There are new questions about Stepien's involvement.

Renna's texts appear to suggest Stepien, Christie's ex-campaign manager, was involved in the lane closings in some way — something his lawyer denied.

Stephen's attorney, Kevin Marino, argued that Renna did not implicate Stepien in her 2014 testimony before the legislative committee.

"The suggestion that Mr. Stepien was nonetheless involved in a conspiracy to close access lanes to the George Washington Bridge based on a text message exchange that has been in the government's possession for literally years is categorically false and irresponsible," Marino said in an email.

Meanwhile, other emails in the new court filing show Stepien worked with a former Port Authority executive to put pressure on Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop to endorse Christie's 2013 re-election campaign. Fulop, a Democrat who was a city councilman at the time, did not end up backing the Republican governor.

Christie cut ties with Stepien in 2014 after it was revealed Stepien had knowledge of — but not necessarily involvement in — the closings. Stepien has not been charged in the case

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