Corzine's condition improves, but he's still not ready to govern

Aides to injured New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine said yesterday they hope he will be able to run the state as he recovers, even if it means governing by video.

Corzine was upgraded from critical condition yesterday and was moved out of intensive care, doctors said. Dr. Steven Ross, head of trauma at Cooper University Hospital, Camden, said Corzine would be in the hospital for at least another week.

Corzine's chief of staff, Tom Shea, said Corzine probably would not resume his duties as long as he is in the hospital.

State Senate President Richard J. Codey is the acting governor.

Spokesman Anthony Coley said Corzine - still unable to govern 11 days after a car crash - may use technology to help him run the state when he is ready.

"We're looking into video-conferencing capability," Coley said.

Shea and doctors said that Corzine has been upbeat, eager to begin physical therapy and that he wants to discuss policy issues.

Since a breathing tube was removed Friday, Corzine has been able to enjoy a few of life's simpler pleasures: watching hockey on television and eating mashed potatoes.

Shea said it was not clear whether Corzine would move from the hospital to an inpatient center, his apartment in Hoboken, the governor's mansion in Princeton or somewhere else.

Corzine has been at the hospital since the April 12 car crash on the Garden State Parkway. He was in the front passenger seat, his seat belt unbuckled, when the state SUV driven by a state trooper at about 90 mph was clipped by a pickup that was swerving to avoid a third vehicle.

Corzine broke his left thigh bone, 11 ribs, a collarbone and his breastbone and had some other, more minor injuries.

He was sedated for more than a week, breathing with the help of a ventilator that prevented him from speaking, and being fed through a tube.

Investigators are trying to find out whether the governor's driver, Trooper Robert Rasinski, had seen angry e-mail messages - possibly on a BlackBerry, cell phone or other device - from the husband of a woman he was allegedly having an affair with, the Star-Ledger of Newark reported Sunday.

Police were looking into whether the e-mail, sent just before the wreck, could have affected Rasinski's driving, the paper said. *