The trial of former DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis began today with potential jurors being asked about secret recordings, snitches and salesmanship.
Ellis, who has been suspended from his elected position for more than a year since he was indicted, will fight criminal charges that he shook down businesses for campaign contributions.
Finding an unbiased jury will be the first challenge in the courtroom of DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Courtney Johnson. Jury selection was expected to take a few days, and then the trial could last several weeks.
DeKalb District Attorney Robert James questioned the first of 200 people in the jury pool about whether they had a problem with law enforcement using secret recordings or confidential informants — methods that his office used as it built the case against Ellis. About four out of 40 potential jurors in the room raised their hands.
The trial is expected to feature secretly recorded conversations of Ellis’ discussions about county contractors. Jurors will also hear from businesspeople who will testify about how Ellis allegedly linked campaign contributions to government jobs.
James also asked jurors whether they’ve worked in telemarketing or sales, which could be relevant because Ellis aggressively sought campaign donations.
The county government, representing more than 700,000 residents, has gained a reputation amid ongoing federal investigations and former Commissioner Elaine Boyer's guilty plea to fraud charges last week.
Ellis appeared in court today surrounded by five defense attorneys, while James and two other attorneys formed the prosecution team.
Ellis raised more than $1.5 million for his re-election in 2012. Almost $600,000 that he raised from 2007 to 2012 came from firms that either worked or wanted to work for the county, according to an analysis by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Ellis’ attorneys will likely make the case that while he strongly pursued campaign money, he didn’t do anything illegal. Accepting contributions from county vendors is permitted, but explicitly tying them to government contracts is not.
Please return to AJC.com and MyAJC.com for updates, and view our page dedicated to coverage of the case.
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