Gillum trial day 9: Prosecutors and defense rest; former mayor opts not to testify
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Both the government and the defense rested their cases on Thursday, the ninth day of the public corruption trial of Andrew Gillum and Sharon Lettman-Hicks.
Gillum, former Tallahassee mayor and Democratic nominee for Florida governor, and Lettman-Hicks, his longtime mentor and owner of P&P Communications, are charged with illegally soliciting campaign donations and routing them to their own accounts. Gillum also is charged with lying to the FBI about the New York trip.
Here are the latest developments in the trial. While cameras and electronics are not allowed in the courtroom, stay tuned to tallahassee.com for daily updates from longtime investigative reporter Jeff Burlew (@JeffBurlew on Twitter).
Andrew Gillum trial: Chronicling the case
Day 1: Jury selected, possible witnesses and an appeal to raise $1M
Day 2 opening arguments: Money as a motive or forcing the evidence?
Day 3: How agents confronted mayor at Cascades; Adam Corey's moment
Day 4: Why the feds delayed charging Andrew Gillum and the money trail
Day 5: Prosecutors trace money trail from 'urgent request' for $250K
Day 7: Campaign operatives testify they weren't aware of P&P get-out-the-vote efforts
Day 8: Feds home in on 'Hamilton' ticket disconnect, 'abnormal' money trail
Decoding the indictment ABCs: Guide to the people, organizations in Andrew Gillum trial
Federal prosecutors rest their case
Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Milligan II announced today that the government’s case has concluded. That followed more direct testimony and cross-examination of Wiederspahn, who took the stand Wednesday for the second time in the trial.
“The government will rest its case in chief,” Milligan said.
The defense is expected to call only a few witnesses, including former state Rep. Alan Williams, who was waiting in the wings at the federal courthouse this morning.
Gillum and Lettman-Hicks’ lawyers are expected to need only a few hours to present their case today. That timing suggests that Gillum will not take the stand to testify.
If the current schedule holds, jurors could hear closing arguments and jury instructions on Friday before starting their deliberations.
It’s theoretically possible, though perhaps unlikely, that a verdict will come on Friday.
Before jurors come back, the defense is expected to argue that the first count in the indictment, accusing Gillum of lying to the FBI, should be dismissed.
In a court filing Thursday, the defense argued that Gillum’s statements to the FBI in June 2017, namely that he wasn’t offered and didn’t accept gifts from the agents in a 2016 New York trip, was “literally true.”
“Even if Mayor Gillum falsely said ‘Southern Pines representatives’ never gave or offered him anything and falsely said he stopped communicating with (them), those statements would be literally true given that Southern Pines Development did not offer or give anything to Gillum, the FBI did,” his lawyers wrote in the motion for acquittal.
Undercover agents in the case posed as developers from Southern Pines Development, which turned out to be an FBI front.
Former agent Wiederspahn testified that financial records of the National Black Justice Coalition, which served as fiscal agent for Gillum's Campaign to Defend Local Solutions, were "confusing." Prosecutors allege Gillum and Lettman-Hicks syphoned off donations to CDLS to pay themselves.
Milligan asked about that but had to rephrase his questions after U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor sustained defense objections.
"Is it confusing ... sometimes when fraud happens because the books are confusing?" Milligan asked.
"Yes," Wiederspahn replied.
Milligan also asked whether people engaged in fraud enlist individuals close to them "because it's easier to manipulate them."
"Yes," Wiederspahn replied.
Prosecutors allege that Gillum and Lettman-Hicks caused John Grayson, an accountant for Lettman-Hicks' firm, P&P Communications and the NBJC who'd done personal work for her for years, to falsely record disbursement of CDLS expenses in the coalition's books.
Gillum's defense rests without calling a single witness; Alan Williams takes the stand
In a surprise move, Gillum’s defense rested Thursday afternoon without calling a single witness. The former mayor’s lead attorneys are David Markus and Margot Moss of Miami.
Both Gillum and Lettman-Hicks indicated earlier in the day that neither of them planned to take the stand in their own defense.
Lettman-Hicks’ lawyers, Alex Morris and Mutaqee Akbar of Tallahassee, called only three witnesses, most notably former state Rep. Alan Williams, a longtime friend of the defendants.
Williams, now a deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, testified that he joined Gillum’s gubernatorial campaign after the primary, though he worked through the state Democratic Party.
He testified that the campaign’s get-out-the-vote campaign was “very successful” and that Lettman-Hicks was actively involved in it.
The campaign spent $130,000 on GOTV in Leon and Gadsden counties, an amount at least one defense witness said was on the high side. Prosecutors allege $60,000 of it was illegally routed to Lettman-Hicks’ firm, P&P Communications, and ultimately to her and Gillum.
Williams testified that the GOTV budget was “probably not enough” and that paying an experienced person $60,000 for GOTV was reasonable. However, he said he was referring to get-out-the-vote efforts in 36 North Florida counties, a broader area than what prosecutors say is at issue in the case.
Williams, asked about Lettman-Hicks’ campaign experience, recalled the Arrive with Five initiative she launched with People for the American Way in 2000 to get voters to bring others to the polls.
Akbar also asked whether it takes a person with “skills and knowledge” to carry out a successful GOTV campaign.
“If they don’t, you’re probably looking at a loser,” he replied.
Williams said Lettman-Hicks had a reputation for being “very truthful and very honest.” During questioning by Markus, he also indicated Gillum was honest.
“I’d trust my children’s lives with Andrew Gillum,” Williams said.
Her lawyers also called Alexandria Currie, president of the FAMU Federal Credit Union, and John Grayson, an accountant who worked for P&P and the NBJC, where Lettman-Hicks was CEO.
Currie testified that Lettman-Hicks opened accounts in March 2017, with total deposits of $250,000, including $150,000 that was put in investment CDs.
Under questioning by Morris, she also said that $150,000 was withdrawn on Dec. 28, 2017. That amount is close to the cost of expenses of Gillum’s local solutions campaign, which Lettman-Hicks’ P&P firm was responsible for paying.
The defense also called Grayson, who testified earlier for the government. Grayson, who had worked with Lettman-Hicks since the early 2000s, said he didn’t know her net worth. But he said she owned Lettman Square, her office building on Melvin Street, and rental property in Virginia.
He remembered her saying on one occasion, “Oh, I’m a millionaire.”
Gavel to gavel coverage
While cameras and electronics are not allowed in the courtroom, stay tuned to tallahassee.com for daily updates from longtime investigative reporter Jeff Burlew (@JeffBurlew on Twitter).
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Andrew Gillum corruption trial Day 9: Updates from the courtroom
