Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Rowland attacks federal indictment, ‘poisonous’ publicity

  • Politics
  • by Mark Pazniokas
  • May 20, 2014
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"
John G. Rowland

WTIC

John G. Rowland

Attorneys for John G. Rowland filed a motion Tuesday that both broadly and narrowly attacks the criminal indictment that accuses the former Republican governor of conspiring to act as a secret paid consultant to the failed congressional campaign of Lisa Wilson-Foley in 2012.

Rowland’s legal team asks Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns to throw out the entire case and, if that fails, to narrow the government’s case in a way that could bar testimony from Mark Greenberg, a congressional candidate who says Rowland proposed a similar arrangement to him in 2010.

“The Government here is attempting to criminalize conduct that is simply not illegal. In doing so, the Government has stretched the bounds of the law well beyond what Congress had intended and well beyond what any court in this Circuit has found permissible,” the lawyers said.

The U.S. Attorney’s response is not due until June 16.

Reid H. Weingarten, the nationally known attorney leading Rowland’s defense, also pressed for advantage in jury selection should Burns refuse to dismiss the case, asking for an expanded right to examine jurors for bias from the extensive publicity that he says has created a “poisonous environment.”

A federal grand jury in April indicted Rowland on seven counts, accusing the former Republican governor, congressman and conservative radio host of soliciting the two congressional campaigns in 2010 and 2012 to secretly pay him as a political consultant.

Greenberg rebuffed him in 2010, but Wilson-Foley and her husband, Brian Foley, have pleaded guilty to federal charges in the case, saying they agreed to secretly pay for Rowland’s help through a consulting contract with Foley’s health-care company.

Foley’s paying $35,000 to Rowland constituted an illegal campaign contribution, because the payment was not disclosed in campaign finance reports to the Federal Election Commission and that the contribution exceeded federal contribution limits, the indictment says.

But the broad assault on the indictment by Rowland’s lawyers includes a claim that the statutory limit on campaign contributions was unconstitutional. In short, Rowland’s lawyers say any wrongdoing was limited to Wilson-Foley and her husband.

“The Indictment fails to allege unlawful conduct by Mr. Rowland. Each of the Indictment’s seven separate counts should be dismissed for this reason. Each count either fails to allege the necessary elements of the offense charged, or the specific facts alleged fall beyond the scope of the relevant criminal statutes at issue,” the lawyers said.

Effort to block testimony from Greenberg?

Should they fail to convince Burns to dismiss the entire indictment, Rowland’s lawyers appear to be trying to at least get the judge to narrow the indictment by throwing out counts related to what the government says were Rowland’s efforts to cut a similar deal with Greenberg.

If successful, that could give Rowland’s teams grounds to object to testimony by Greenberg. Without Greenberg’s testimony, the defense could have a better chance at portraying Wilson-Foley and Foley as incriminating Rowland in an effort to win leniency for their admitted wrongdoing.

Rowland’s lawyers say the government wrongly claims that Rowland schemed with Greenberg to draft a false document — a contract that would have paid Rowland through Greenberg’s non-profit animal rescue center instead of through his campaign.

The media awaited Rowland after his arraignment. His lawyer says the publicity is toxic.

CT Mirror

The media awaited Rowland after his arraignment. His lawyer says the publicity is toxic.

“First, an unsigned, unexecuted draft contract between private parties (on which no work was ever performed and no payments were ever made) cannot be false. Holding otherwise would be tantamount to criminalizing an inchoate thought crime,” they said.

Jury selection and trial in the case are set for September.

Facing impeachment and a federal bid-rigging investigation into gifts and favors from state contractors, Rowland resigned as governor July 1, 2004, and pleaded guilty to a corruption charge Dec. 23, 2004. Three months later, he was sentenced to a year and a day in prison, ultimately serving 10 months.

Rowland reinvented himself as the host of a popular afternoon talk show on WTIC-AM. He resigned in August when it was clear that a new indictment was imminent.

Weingarten, his lawyer in the new case, promised after Rowland’s arraignment that the former governor would aggressively contest the new charges.

Publicity creates ‘toxic environment’ for jurors

The motion to dismiss and supporting documents were filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New Haven. A second motion was filed in case the first fails: It asks the court to allow an expanded examination of prospective jurors to combat against pre-trial publicity.

“Our system of justice depends upon trial in the courtroom, not in the media,” Weingarten wrote. “That principle is under threat here. Mr. Rowland has been the subject of an exceptional amount of pre-trial publicity, much of which discusses Mr. Rowland’s past conviction and assumes Mr. Rowland is guilty of the charges currently lodged against him. That publicity has already created a toxic environment among potential jurors.”

Weingarten wants permission to examine prospective jurors with a special questionnaire and direct questions, plus the right to peremptory challenges that would allow him dismiss up to five jurors without stating a cause.

“Those protections are warranted here,” he wrote. “Mr. Rowland’s term as governor, his prior conviction, and the intense media coverage of his indictment and arraignment have created a poisonous environment in which potential jurors have been bombarded with the suggestion that Mr. Rowland is corrupt, guilty, and deserving of jail time—all before one minute of testimony or evidence is heard.”

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mark Pazniokas is the Capitol Bureau Chief and a co-founder of CT Mirror. He is a frequent contributor to WNPR, a former state politics writer for The Hartford Courant and Journal Inquirer, and contributor for The New York Times.

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
Connecticut House joins national civil rights campaign over Black hair styles
by Mark Pazniokas

The Connecticut House voted for a bill intended to protect Black women from discrimination over their hair.

CT legislature poised to make early budget pledge to help cities and towns
by Keith M. Phaneuf

The state House is expected to approve more than $100 million in new, annual PILOT grants to municipalities.

Connecticut GOP picks Susan Hatfield as state chair
by Mark Pazniokas

Susan Hatfield, vice chair of the Connecticut Republican Party, will complete the term of the former chair, J.R. Romano.

Senator alleges voter fraud, but no complaint was filed
by Mark Pazniokas

Rob Sampson said a voter in his district was told an absentee ballot already had been cast in her name.

Boston Fed chief predicts strong economic recovery begins in 2nd half of 2021 if vaccine reaches enough people
by Keith M. Phaneuf

A strong economic rebound also depends on states helping those hit hardest by COVID-19, a federal reserve official said.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion The historical basis of zoning begs for reform
by Lawrence Rizzolo

Discussions of race are fraught with emotion. Witness the zoning reforms being discussed in our legislature. I will attempt to advance a dispassionate argument that is based on government-sponsored racism that occurred during my lifetime and led to the structural problems that persist today.

Opinion Lamont must stop waffling on the Killingly power plant issue
by Tennyson Benedict

On January 19, Gov. Ned Lamont gave his bluntest comments yet regarding the controversial Killingly natural gas plant, saying, “I don’t want to build Killingly.”  Yet, Lamont still refuses to wield his executive authority to actually stop its construction, and instead offers vague suggestions that market forces will stop the plant’s construction.

Opinion Religious freedom is less than righteousness
by Spencer Hill

The CT Viewpoints opinion “Religious freedom is more than religion” shows just how entrenched is the sincerely held belief that one man’s notion of “freedom” dictates the liberty of others.

Opinion To boost economy, state should invest in the ‘last mile’ of broadband connectivity
by Thomas J. Peters, Ph.D

In his budget address on February 10,   Gov. Ned Lamont announced his intent to expand broadband connectivity in Connecticut, an effort to be lauded. Connecticut enjoys a significant competitive advantage for economic development in the Connecticut Education Network (CEN), “ a 2,500 route mile, all optical, high-performance internet network.”

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO