He also placed a few copies of the book at a library display table, and posted a sign: "Best Book Ever Written." If someone were interested, they got a book free.

But one person's parental pride is another panel's ethical transgression.

On Monday, the city's Conflicts of Interest Board announced it had settled a case it had brought against Mr. Grandt for promoting his daughter's work. He agreed to pay a $500 fine and admit in a three-page stipulation that he had violated the city ethics code.

Mr. Grandt, who said he was an unwitting villain, was disappointed the board did not see things his way.

"There are so many things going on they could investigate," he said in an interview, "and they had nothing better to do than allege that my daughter would have gotten 20 cents in royalties if someone bought the book. But nobody did. I gave out free copies. I was just so proud of my daughter for writing it."