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DEL.ICIO.USCampbell arrives for federal corruption trial
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A confident Bill Campbell arrived at the Richard B. Russell Federal Building in downtown Atlanta this morning (see photos), calling the opening of jury selection in his federal racketeering trial, “a day I’ve waited for for a long time – the opportunity to clear my name.�
Campbell arrived with his wife, Sharon, attorneys and about 12 supporters. The task of selecting the 12 jurors and four alternates from a pool of nearly 230 was expected to last several days, with the trial getting under way Monday.
The seven-count indictment alleges that Campbell, now 52, managed City Hall as a criminal enterprise, and it accuses him of racketeering, accepting bribes and tax evasion.
Outside the courtroom, Campbell insisted he would be vindicated. “I have good attorneys, I have a supportive family, I have the prayers of so many people from Atlanta, so I’m anxious to move this process forward as quickly as possible and be vindicated,� Campbell said. “It’s something I’ve hoped for many years.�
Sounding as much like a preacher as a politician, Campbell said, “the Bible says that faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. I have great faith in the jury system, so I’m confident of vindication.�
Just before entering U.S. District Court Judge Richard Story’s courtroom about 8:50 a.m., Campbell and his entourage prayed, saying he was innocent of charges that he used his two terms as Atlanta mayor to run a criminal enterprise. They also prayed that God would strengthen his family.
As mayor from 1994 to 2002, the federal indictment contends, Campbell raked in more than $160,000 in payoffs and collected $137,000 in illegal campaign contributions. It also charges that city contractors bankrolled a trip to Paris for Campbell, sent him on gambling junkets and installed a heating and air-conditioning system in his Inman Park home.
If convicted, Campbell faces certain prison time of an estimated four to seven years. Lawyers familiar with the case have said they do not believe that a deal between Campbell and prosecutors is an option.
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