Alabama bingo trial updates

http://www2.dothaneagle.com/news/2011/jul/29/5/bingo-corruption-trial-tom-coker-defense-continues-ar-2204257/ 

Bingo corruption trial: Entire defense rests
Jury will be fully sequestered during deliberations
By Lance Griffin, Dothan Eagle - July 29, 2011

MONTGOMERY – Friday began as a morning just like any other morning here at the bingo corruption trial.

Then, suddenly, all nine defendants rested their case.

Moments after the jury entered the courtroom, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson made a statement.

“Mr. McGregor, I believe you have something to announce to the jury?”

With that, Victoryland owner Milton McGregor and lead attorney Joe Espy walked to the lectern in the courtroom on the second floor of the Frank M. Johnson Federal Building.

“Your honor, the McGregor defense rests,” Espy said.

The remaining eight defendants followed suit, ending the defense portion of the case after one day and one witness.

Closing arguments will begin Wednesday and are expected to last about two days. Thompson and the attorneys will spend Monday and Tuesday hammering out matters dealing with the length of the arguments and the proposed jury instructions. It is expected the jury will begin deliberations under full sequestration Friday.

Thompson said he will also rule on renewed motions for acquittal Monday at 9 a.m.

The defendants’ decisions to rest came as a surprise to many, and were made following a Thursday night meeting between attorneys in the case.

Jim Parkman, attorney for Sen. Harri Anne Smith, said a perceived weary jury played into the decision. Jury selection in the case began June 6.

“Our impression was that the jury got it, one way or another.”Parkman said.

Only one defendant, lobbyist Tom Coker, had begun his defense case. Coker attorney Bill Baxley questioned Richard “Dickie” Whitaker, director of governmental affairs for the Medical Association of Alabama, about a $10,000 contribution Coker gave to defendant Sen. Quinton Ross on behalf of the association after the Senate passed pro gambling legislation. The government contended the Coker gave the money on behalf of McGregor through the medical association in response to Ross’ repeated requests for campaign donations in exchange for his vote on electronic bingo legislation. Government prosecutor Edward Kang aggressively cross-examined Whitaker for most of the day Thursday.

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http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20110801/NEWS/110801012/Judge-dismisses-counts-against-McGregor-Crosby?odyssey=nav|head 

Judge dismisses counts against McGregor, Crosby
By Sebastian Kitchen, Montgomery Advertiser - August 1, 2011

U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson on Monday dropped 12 counts against legislative analyst Ray Crosby and one of the charges against VictoryLand owner Milton McGregor in the ongoing federal corruption case.

Thompson ruled that McGregor was acquitted on count 3, which charged McGregor and lobbyist Bob Geddie with bribing state Rep. Barry Mask. They were both charged with federal programs bribery and aiding and abetting on the charge.

"As to count 3, the evidence presented by the government under the theory it asserted to the court is insufficient to support a conviction under this count," Thompson wrote in his order.

Thompson dropped the conspiracy charge against Crosby and all 11 of the honest services charges against Crosby. All of those counts charged all nine of the defendants.

There is one count of federal programs bribery and aiding and abetting remaining against Crosby, who was paid $3,000 a month by McGregor while he was also being paid to work for the Legislature.

Thompson denied motions for acquittal by lobbyist Tom Coker; former state Sense. Jim Preuitt of Talladega and Larry Means of Attalla; current state Sens. Quinton Ross of Montgomery and Harri Anne Smith of Slocomb; and former Country Crossing spokesman Jay Walker.

They are charged for their roles in an alleged scheme in which casino interests bribed state lawmakers to vote for gambling legislation.

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http://blog.al.com/live/2011/08/alabama_bingo_trial_closing_arguments.html

Alabama bingo trial prosecutors focus on 'greed' as closing arguments begin
By Brendan Kirby, Press-Register - August 3, 2011

MONTGOMERY, Alabama — Prosecutors in the Alabama State House vote-buying trial started their closing arguments today much the way they approached opening statements 7 weeks ago — by painting the defendants as greedy for money.

In between, prosecutors tried to show that VictoryLand casino owner Milton McGregor conspired with Country Crossing owner Ronnie Gilley and several others to bribe state legislators in order to win passage of a controversial law that would have given voter a chance to legalize electronic bingo machines.

McGregor, 2 of his lobbyists, a spokesman for Gilley, a legislative analyst and 4 current or former state senators are on trial.

“Mr. McGregor didn’t try to get this bill passed legitimately,” prosecutor Edward Kang told jurors. “You see, he had too much at stake.”

Kang said McGregor had made millions of dollars by capitalizing on the willingness of patrons to risk their money in his casino but “he didn’t want to leave anything to chance.”

Kang reminded jurors of testimony indicating the stakes McGregor had riding on the outcome of that bill, which cleared the state Senate in March of last year but died in the House of Representatives after the FBI investigation became public.

McGregor’s personal and business income plummeted from $48 million in 2009 to a $4 million loss the following year, largely due to then-Gov. Bob Riley’s crackdown on electronic gambling. Passage of the constitutional amendment would have expressly made those machines legal.

McGregor also had invested heavily in both his own operation and Gilley’s Country Crossing project in Houston County.

“My ass is on the line,” McGregor says in one of many conversations that the FBI secretly recorded. “I have a $200 million note that I’ve got to pay right now.”

The evidence has shown, Kang argued, that the “politics-as-usual defense” does not hold water.

Kang argued that the evidence has proved that McGregor’s lobbyists, Tom Coker and Bob Geddie, actively participated in the conspiracy so they could “cash in” when the bill became law.

“They know the rules of the game, and they knew their conduct in this case went way over the line,” he said. “And you know what? They didn’t care.”

Prosecutors offered testimony that Geddie told and employee at his firm to conceal McGregor as the true source of campaign checks he delivered to state Rep. Barry Mask in the two of two unrelated political action committees.

Prosecutor says Milton McGregor only cares about one color 

Kang spent much time this morning trying to tie McGregor and his lobbyists to Gilley and lobbyists Jarrod Massey and Jennifer Pouncy, all of whom have pleaded guilty and testified during the trial.

He pointed to phone records showing McGregor and Gilley exchanged 73 phone calls during the legislative session — 8 per day.

“Do you call your spouse, your kids, 8 times a day?” he said.

Kang noted that McGregor approached even lawmakers whom he had long opposed, like Mask and state Sen. Scott Beason. He said that shows clearly that McGregor was not simply making contributions to like-minded politicians but, in fact, were bribe offers.

Kang said McGregor didn’t care about red or blue — Republicans or Democrats. “He cares only about green — the color of money,” he said.

Kang also made the case against Jay Walker, who served as the spokesman for Country Crossing. “Ronnie Gilley was Jay Walker’s gravy train, and Walker knew that,” he said.

Walker on a recorded conversation March 24 told Gilley that he told then-state Sen. Jim Preuitt that all he needed was his vote. In exchange, Walker offered his campaign services, including polling and help lining up appearances by country music stars. 

Kang also pointed to a portion of a phone conversation in which Gilley talks to Preuitt about country state George Jones possibly buying a truck from his dealership. Preuitt’s side of the conversation was not recorded.

Kang pointed to evidence that Ray Crosby, who worked for the agency in charge of helping lawmakers draft legislation, took $3,000 a month from McGregor but did not disclose the arrangement until he filed an amended form after the FBI began investigating. Even then, Kang said, Crosby listed it as “passive income” in an attempt to hide the arrangement and listed the source as MCGP — initials for McGregor’s company that the public would not be able to easily identify.

Kang reminded jurors of testimony that state Sen. Harri Anne Smith, I-Slocomb, was kicked out of the Republican Party, which he characterized as an incentive to take Gilley’s money and change her position on gambling.

“Sen. Smith had to somehow fill the void by her loss of Republican support,” he said.

Smith also, according to testimony from former state Sen. Steve French, 3 times offered her a campaign contribution in exchange for supporting the bingo bill. Kang said it demonstrates that Smith was getting paid to recruit fellow lawmakers.

Kang also tried to persuade jurors of the guilt of 2 former senators, Preuitt of Talladega and Larry Means of Gadsden. He said Means actively looked for handouts when he found out Preuitt had been offered a bribe.

“Sen. Means was greedy,” he said. “He wanted a piece of the action that Sen. Preuitt was getting.”

Kang pointed to testimony from Pouncy that Means’ request amounted to a “shakedown” for $100,000 and that Massey later authorized the payment.

State Sen. Quinton Ross, too, aggressively demanded contributions even though he was unopposed in the upcoming election, Kang said. Pouncy testified that the Montgomery Democrat, a longtime gambling supporter, told her in 2009 that he was “not feeling the love.” That, Kang said, was evidence the Ross was leveraging the close upcoming vote to get donations.

Five weeks after the vote, Ross got a $10,000 contribution from the Alabama Medical Association, which Kang said was a laundered bribe.

Prosecutors still have about an hour before defense attorneys begin making their arguments.