Source: Spokane Spokesman-Review
Cody Castagna in a c. 2004 photo shoot.
photo: Fleshbot [nsfw]OLYMPIA -- An awful lot is known about then-state-lawmaker Richard Curtis’ recent trysts with men at a Spokane Valley adult bookstore and downtown hotel last month. But here’s something you probably didn’t know:
You paid for the trip.
Curtis’ travel records, obtained Thursday by The Spokesman-Review through a public records request, show that Curtis’ three-day trip to Spokane cost taxpayers nearly $800.
They also show that during his three years as a legislator, Curtis was a prolific traveler, racking up more than $18,000 in expenses in 37 overnight trips around the state, as well as to New York City, San Francisco and Boston. Several of those overnight stays were in Spokane.
The late-October bills for his Spokane trip include about 49 cents a mile for the Vancouver-area lawmaker’s 718-mile drive to the Lilac City and back, as well as $100 a day for food and expenses.
Taxpayers also picked up the $77-a-night tab for the Davenport Tower hotel room in which Curtis had sex with waiter and part-time porn model Cody Castagna.
Curtis was in Spokane Oct. 24 to 26th for a House Republicans retreat to discuss the upcoming legislative session. In the pre-dawn hours of Oct. 26, he reportedly donned women’s lingerie and had sexual contact with a man at Hollywood Erotic Boutique. Curtis, who voted against gay rights bills while in the Legislature, then returned to the Davenport Tower, where Castagna joined him for sex.
Legislative staffers said Thursday that no one questioned paying the cost of the trip. Curtis by all accounts did attend the Republican caucus meetings during the day.
"House policy authorizes member to be reimbursed for travel expenses associated with their attendance of official meeting of legislative caucuses" and similar events, said House deputy chief clerk Bernard Dean.
All told, Curtis made five state-paid trips to Spokane since 2005.
The biggest bill of Curtis’ legislative career, in fact, stemmed from a June visit to the city. Over the course of six days, taxpayers picked up a $2,876 tab for Curtis, including a $332-a-night room at the Davenport Hotel, airfare, and $443 to rent a black Chrysler convertible. For five nights, his hotel bill alone – including several in-room movies and room-service meals – was $1,937. The state didn’t reimburse Curtis for the movies.
What was the former fire captain turned legislator doing in Spokane? Attending a firefighters’ convention.
A legislative accounting staffer questioned the cost, writing "Would you please let me know why this rate was so high?" in an email to Curtis.
Curtis said the $332-a-night room was the only one he could find.
Full article: SR.com: Ex-lawmaker's Spokane visits cost thousands