Debbie LeHardy

Could RNC Finance Official Fired After Purchases At Luxury Boutique Be In Legal Jeopardy?

Zachary Roth | May 10, 2010, 12:32PM

RNC Chair Michael Steele and RNC Deputy Finance Director Debbie LeHardy

A Republican fundraising pro who was fired from the RNC after putting purchases at a high-end jewelry boutique on the party's tab, could potentially wind up in more hot water.

Debbie LeHardy was terminated Friday as the RNC's deputy finance director. Last month, reporters for Alternet and other outlets, combing through the RNC's FEC filings in the wake of the recent scandal over a night out at a bondage-themed night-club, found that LeHardy was reimbursed for a $450 purchase from Henri Bendel, a Manhattan jewelry and accessories boutique that touts itself as a "girls' playground for trendsetting young women from around the world." Though the store has no restaurant, the expenditure was listed on the FEC report as a meal.

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