Millions Caused Corruption

Federal prosecutor says millions caused corruption
By PHILLIP RAWLS
Associated Press


MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- A prosecutor in Alabama's gambling corruption trial told jurors Wednesday that the defendants offered money for votes to pass pro-gambling legislation because electronic bingo machines were making millions of dollars and they didn't want to lose their gravy train.

"These defendants worked with each other to corrupt the Alabama legislative process and the reason they did it is money," prosecutor Edward Kang said in closing arguments.

Defense attorneys countered that prosecutors failed to tie the nine defendants to three people who pleaded guilty to offering bribes to legislators and testified for the prosecution. They said that's why the defense rested after calling only one witness.

"There is a total failure of proof and they can't get around it," said Joe Espy, attorney for VictoryLand casino owner Milton McGregor.

Wednesday was the first of two days that are being devoted to closing arguments in the nine-week trial. The sequestered jury will likely begin deliberations Friday and will continue into the weekend, if necessary.

While the trial was going on Wednesday, a judge in another gambling case issued a ruling that could allow a closed casino to reopen.

Special Greene County Circuit Judge Houston Brown ruled that Alabama's attorney general lacked probable cause to seize electronic bingo machines at Greenetrack in Eutaw and that a warrant used to take the machines contained misleading information. He ordered state police to return the machines.

In the gambling trial in Montgomery, the prosecution began its closing arguments by saying greed prompted McGregor, 72, to abandon legitimate lobbying and resort to the promise of campaign contributions to get votes for legislation to protect electronic bingo machines.

"For years he had raked in millions and millions of dollars from the electronic bingo machines at VictoryLand casino," Kang said. But he said the casino had been forced to close in January 2010 by Gov. Bob Riley's gambling task force and McGregor was desperate because he had to pay a $200 million note from his expansion of the casino complex in Shorter, 15 miles east of Montgomery.

Kang said McGregor's lobbyists, Tom Coker and Bob Geddie, joined in the scheme because McGregor had become their financial gravy train and they persuaded four senators to vote for the bill by promising quick campaign contributions for the 2010 elections.

"Each of these defendants was driven to crime - to bribery - because of their lust for money," Kang said.

In addition to McGregor, Coker and Geddie, the defendants are independent Sen. Harri Anne Smith of Slocomb, Democratic Sen. Quinton Ross of Montgomery, former Democratic Sen. Larry Means of Attalla, former Republican Sen. Jim Preuitt of Talladega, retired legislative employee Ray Crosby, and Country Crossing casino spokesman Jay Walker.

The trial stems from a proposed constitutional amendment to protect electronic bingo machines and let VictoryLand and other casinos reopen after being forced to close by the governor's task force. The four senators voted for the bill when the Senate passed it with the minimum number of votes possible on March 30, 2010. The FBI announced its investigation of Statehouse corruption two days later, and the bill soon died in the House without coming to a vote.

Three people pleaded guilty before the trial and testified against the nine defendants. They were Country Crossing casino developer Ronnie Gilley and two of his lobbyists, Jarrod Massey and Jennifer Pouncy.

Prosecutors said Gilley and his lobbyists operated as one team with McGregor and his lobbyists because both casino owners had so much money on the line and because McGregor provided about $14 million in funding for Gilley's Country Crossing casino in Dothan.

McGregor's attorney cited a wiretapped phone call in which McGregor complained that he didn't know what Gilley was doing sometimes. He also said that McGregor's written agreement with Gilley required him to spend McGregor's money in a lawful manner.

"There is no evidence that any of these people, other than Gilley and Massey, entered into an unlawful conspiracy," Espy said.

Espy said three Republican legislators who helped the FBI's investigation and recorded phone calls and meetings with some of the defendants were determined to do anything to kill the gambling legislation.

The prosecution urged the jury not to be distracted by racially demeaning comments made by one of the three legislators.

Prosecutor Louis Franklin said that he was offended like everyone else by a tape recording where Republican Sen. Scott Beason of Gardendale referred to customers of a gambling hall in a predominantly black county as "aborigines." But Franklin said defense attorneys brought out the comment to distract jurors' attention from Beason's testimony about being offered bribes to support pro-gambling legislation.

"This case is not about race. This case is about whether these defendants participated in a scheme to corrupt the legislative process," Franklin said.

Defense attorneys for McGregor's lobbyists portrayed them as veteran workers at Alabama's Statehouse with sterling reputations.

Coker's lawyer, Bill Baxley, said the thousands of tapes secured by wiretaps and at meetings contained no mention of Coker offering a bribe to a legislator for his vote. "Thank God for these tapes," Baxley said.

Geddie's lawyer, Jimmy Judkins, said no legislators testified about Geddie asking them to vote for the gambling legislation.

Attorneys for the other six defendants will give their closing arguments Thursday.