Thread: One Crooked Politician Exposed and convicted ....

If we could just nail a few more. He was one of those that did for himself and his friends, no matter what the voters wanted.

He got off easy.




Ex-Atlanta mayor gets jail for evading taxes
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-06-14 09:32



Former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell speaks during a debate in Atlanta in this November 23, 1997 file photo. Campbell was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in federal prison on Tuesday on charges of tax evasion.[Reuters]
Former Atlanta mayor Bill Campbell was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in US federal prison on Tuesday on charges of tax evasion.

The two-term ex-mayor, who had been convicted of tax evasion in March after a US corruption trial, was also ordered to pay a US$6,000 fine and more than US$60,000 in back taxes. He said he would appeal.

"This is not justice," Campbell said on local television after his sentencing. "This is an abomination in terms of what we had expected and certainly in terms of what the jury's verdict was."

Campbell, Democratic mayor of Georgia's capital city from 1994 to 2002, was found guilty of three tax violation charges by a jury but was acquitted on four more serious charges of racketeering and bribery.

During a seven-week trial, prosecutors charged that Campbell accepted more than $150,000 in bribes while in office from people seeking city contracts or licenses, and spent it on lavish trips.

Campbell was indicted in August 2004 after a five-year investigation into municipal corruption.

CNN Story

Atlanta's former mayor sentenced to prison

Judge says Campbell has not accepted responsibility for crimes

Wednesday, June 14, 2006 Posted: 0055 GMT (0855 HKT)


ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell, who presided over the city's economic renaissance of the 1990s, was sentenced Tuesday to 30 months in prison and fined more than $6,000 for racketeering and tax evasion.

U.S. District Judge Richard Story praised Campbell, 53, for two decades of public service but said he could not ignore his crimes.

Campbell was convicted in March of a single racketeering count and three counts of tax evasion. He was cleared of charges he lined his pockets with payoffs from a contractor but was found guilty of failing to pay taxes on what prosecutors said was illegally obtained money. Campbell said the money was gambling winnings. (Watch the prosecutor explain the crimes -- 3:19)

"Yes, Bill Campbell, you did good things, and there is a person in this room that recognizes this," Story said, referring to himself. He cited Campbell's work in improving public housing in Atlanta as an example.

But the judge added that during the trial he "was overcome, almost appalled, at the breadth of misconduct in your administration."

"I am going to send you to prison," Story told Campbell, who was mayor for eight years and served for 12 years on the City Council. Campbell must also settle with the Internal Revenue Service for $62,823 in taxes he failed to pay.

Story said the punishment was harsher than it might have been because Campbell had not been honest during a pre-sentencing investigation.

Campbell had denied getting documents -- tally sheets that reflected his gambling winnings -- from a prosecution witness before his trial. The witness said Tuesday that he gave Campbell the sheets.

Story also cited $45,000 in kickbacks he said Campbell received from a city contractor, even though the jury found that Campbell had not taken the money.

"Within my heart, I am not sure you have accepted responsibility for what happened," the judge said Tuesday.

Campbell, dressed in a dark suit and tie, his wife seated behind him, had no immediate response.

Later, he said he "disagrees vehemently" with the sentence. "This is not justice. We will appeal," he said. "We are very confident that we will prevail on appeal."

"I've never betrayed the public trust and the jury found that way," Campbell added. (Watch as Campbell reacts to the verdict outside the courthouse -- :56)

He described the sentence as "an attempt to undo the jury's verdict."

David Nahmias, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, disagreed. "We respect the jury's verdict." he said. "The jury found him guilty of three serious tax felonies."

He called the sentence "a fair result" and added, "I'll tell you today that his appeal will ultimately be denied."

The court found that Campbell intentionally failed to report more than $160,000 in income on three tax returns, Nahmias said.

Campbell will be assigned a date by the Bureau of Prisons to begin serving his sentence unless the judge grants him a bond pending appeal. Typically, people involved in white-collar crimes serve their sentence at low-security prisons.

They ought to make these guys pay for the trials. First they steal millions from taxpayers and he let the sewer system of Atlanta fall into ruin. He let lobbyists and black friends buy downtown property at tax sales.

This guy has been looking at real estate in Palm Beach. He is the biggest crook. Now he is pulling the "race card".



The government spent millions on a seven-year investigation into city hall corruption, which also led to the conviction of 10 of Campbell's subordinates.

During the trial, prosecutors tried to prove that Campbell had taken more than $160,000 in illegal campaign contributions, cash payments, junkets and home improvements from city contractors while he was mayor from 1994 to 2002.

Instead, he was convicted on just three counts of federal tax evasion, and acquitted on racketeering and bribery charges — a verdict he and his attorneys painted as a vindication. Campbell was once considered a rising star for Democrats.

Seeing as how he was a democrat, I am surprised they found him guilty of any charges.

it suprised everyone that he was convicted - he is even more crooked than meets the eye.