Judge-to-be and Pal Indicted

It's not exactly a Rod Blagojevich-level scam, but Manhattan D.A. Robert Morgenthau hit new surrogate judge Nora Anderson and her money bags employer, Seth Rubenstein, with criminal charges today. Anderson, 56, and Rubenstein, 81, were slammed with six felony counts of making false filings for Anderson's winning campaign this fall for surrogate judge.

The duo were also indicted on four misdemeanor counts for knowlingly violating the campaign finance limits and listing contributions falsely. As recounted in this week's Voice, Rubenstein was tripped up when an ex-prosecutor working at a bank spotted suspicious transactions between Rubenstein's and Anderson's bank accounts.

The pair are expected to plead not guilty. They face up to four years in prison on each of the felony counts, and one year on the misdemeanor charges.