The no-longer-Hon. Steven Terry 'If you can't eat [lobbyists'] food, drink their booze, . . . take their money and then vote against them, you've got no business being [in politics],' said Jesse Unruh, a one-time Speaker of the California General Assembly, in the 1960s. That is one way of looking at it. Another way of looking at it comes courtesy of the federal anti-corruption statutes, one of which prohibits an official from accepting things of value 'in return for' official acts. A jury found that a state court judge did just that and convicted him of several honest services fraud violations. We affirm.I can't say there's anything extraordinary in Thursday's Sixth Circuit decision upholding former Judge Steven Terry's conviction on public corruption charges, but it does help explain the answer to a question which I'm sure is confusing to many: Given that many people want "something" in exchange for a campaign contribution, when does it cross the line into bribery? Follow me below the fold to find out.
No comments:
Post a Comment