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Politics : Bill Clinton Scandal - SANITY CHECK -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MulhollandDrive who wrote (6511)	10/1/1998 12:15:00 PM
From: Zoltan!	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 67261

Update on the most indicted, most corrupt Administration in US history: Ex-Ag Secretary Espy Goes on Trial By ANNE GEARAN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy was ''easy pickings'' for corrupt businesses or lobbyists with hopes of influencing his decisions, a prosecutor charged as Espy's corruption trial got under way today. Espy was a huge sports fan and chronically short of money, Independent Counsel Donald Smaltz told jurors in his opening statement. Companies whose business was heavily dependent on Agriculture Department regulations or decisions knew they could get Espy's ear when he was secretary by giving him tickets to such things as a Chicago Bulls championship game or the U.S. Open, Smaltz said. ''They used Mr. Espy's fondness for sports to get on his good side,'' Smaltz said. ''He was easy pickings for companies that wanted to slip him something special.'' Espy is charged with taking illegal gifts, lying about it and trying to get a friend to cover for him. He is not charged with taking bribes, and prosecutors do not have to prove that the companies giving gifts to Espy got anything in return. Prosecutors have lined up about 100 witnesses, and attorneys for Espy plan a similar number of witnesses at his federal trial. Espy faces 38 charges involving allegations he accepted about $35,000 worth of travel, sports tickets, luggage and other goods. Four days of jury selection ended Tuesday with a panel of 12, plus six alternates. U.S. District Judge Ricardo M. Urbina predicted the trial will last a minimum of six weeks. Espy pleaded innocent last year to 39 charges, including one that has since been dropped. The potentially most serious charges are three alleged violations of the 1907 federal meat inspection law, each of which carries a mandatory minimum one-year prison term. A former Democratic congressman from Mississippi, Espy was President Clinton's first agriculture secretary. Espy resigned in 1994 after Smaltz began an investigation of his relationships with several companies, including chicken processor Tyson Foods Inc. Arkansas-based Tyson was fined $6 million after pleading guilty to giving Espy more than $12,000 in gifts. Smaltz's four-year investigation also included Espy associates and former employees. Espy, 45, practices law in Mississippi. newsday.com