|
 In a heated fifth day on the witness stand in his federal
corruption trial, McDonnell said there was no link between $50,000
in loans to a realty company McDonnell was a partner in and help he
may have given the entrepreneur, Jonnie Williams Sr.
"You're completely off base," McDonnell, a Republican whose
four-year term ended in January, told Assistant U.S. Attorney
Michael Dry during the second day of his cross-examination in a
packed U.S. District Court in Richmond, the state capital.
Dry ended his questioning of McDonnell by mid-afternoon. Later,
McDonnell told defense attorney Henry Asbill that he had made
mistakes and that his family had taken too many gifts and loans from
Williams.
“I allowed my life to get out of balance,” McDonnell said. “So my
judgment was not as good as it should have been.”
But McDonnell emphasized that he had only performed routine
courtesies for Williams, as he would for any Virginia businessman.
He said that Williams had never specifically asked him to do
anything.
McDonnell also reiterated that his wife Maureen’s angry outbursts
and bad behavior had estranged them.
A key element of the defense’s case has been that the McDonnells
couldn’t have been in a conspiracy to help Williams, because they
rarely spoke to each other.
One of Maureen McDonnell’s attorneys has said she had a crush on
Williams and that many would consider their relationship to be
“inappropriate.”
[to top of second column] |
In his questioning, Dry emphasized that the ex-governor never told
his chief counsel or staff about loans from Williams, even though
the former Star Scientific Inc chief executive wanted state-backed
research for his firm's main product, the anti-inflammatory
Anatabloc.
McDonnell has said he never discussed his finances with
subordinates.
"At the end of the day, you didn't inform your senior staff ...
because you had a real fear that they would start asking questions,"
Dry said.
McDonnell and his wife face a 14-count indictment for allegedly
taking $177,000 in gifts and loans from Williams in exchange for
promoting Star Scientific and Anatabloc. The couple have denied any
wrongdoing.
If convicted on all charges, the McDonnells could be sentenced to 20
years in prison and face hefty fines.
(Editing by Ian Simpson, Eric Beech and Paul Simao)
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
