Clinton Aide Pleads Not Guilty in Fundraising Case
Mon Jan 24, 2005 04:44 PM ET
By Gina Keating
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A former campaign finance director for Sen. Hillary Clinton pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Los Angeles on Monday to charges of filing false reports during her 2000 run for the U.S. Senate.
Lawyers for David Rosen, 40, told Magistrate Judge Stephen Hillman that they planned to ask to move the case to Washington.
"This wasn't a matter of judge shopping ... we want the case assigned to D.C.," Rosen's attorney told the judge.
Each of the four counts of filing false reports with the Federal Election Commission could carry a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines.
Rosen, who lives in Chicago, was released and ordered to appear in district court in Los Angeles for a March 22 trial.
The charges against Rosen stem from an Aug. 12, 2000, "Hollywood Gala" that cost more than $1.2 million, $1.1 million of which was paid for with "in-kind" contributions from a "wealthy individual," according to the grand jury indictment.
Rosen told the Federal Election Commission the "in kind" contributions totaled only $400,000, and prepared a false invoice showing that the concert portion of the gala cost only $200,000, the indictment said.
The major contributor to the fund-raiser, who was not named in the grand jury indictment, has identified himself as Peter Paul, the founder of a firm called Stan Lee Media.
In 2001, Paul filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against Clinton, Rosen and others claiming that they had failed to report $1.9 million in contributions he made to her Senate campaign a year earlier.
Paul said Rosen told him not to reveal the true cost of the fund-raiser because "certain fund-raising ratios required by federal campaign finance laws would be skewed."
Paul said he covered the entire bill for the event, which was held at the Brentwood, California, home of radio magnate Ken Roberts. He said he was surprised when his contribution was listed at just $2,000, according to his FEC complaint.
Paul, who was extradited from Brazil in 2003 after having fled there, faces unrelated securities fraud charges.
He claimed in a civil suit that he contributed to Hillary Clinton's New York Senate campaign in exchange for a promise from President Clinton to go to work for his company after leaving the White House.
The former president has denied that and both Clintons have asked the California Supreme Court to dismiss the suit.
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