Judge raps lawyers for going too slowly in Jefferson trial

• By GERARD SHIELDS
• Advocate Washington bureau
• Published: Jun 23, 2009 - Page: 8A

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WASHINGTON — The federal judge in the bribery trial of former U.S. Rep. William Jefferson lashed out Monday at attorneys in the case for the slow pace of the proceedings.

Government prosecutors have said they intend to call 49 witnesses over the estimated six-week trial. Their first witness has been on the stand for a week.

“The government needs to focus sharply on this case and not get into the minutia,” U.S. District Court Judge T.S. Ellis said. “We are getting far afield now.”

Ellis said he will not be “a bump on the log umpire.”

“I’m concerned there is a lot of confusion,” Ellis said. “If this case lasts six weeks, it will be contrary to my intentions.”

Ellis erupted during a segment in which Jefferson’s lead attorney, Robert Trout, was trying to lay a foundation that the government cooperating witness went to the FBI not to complain about Jefferson, but two other business partners.

Trout has contended that the U.S. Justice Department went after Jefferson after he was linked as promoting the business deal, a telecommunications project in Nigeria. The Ellis admonishment came during the testimony of Vernon Jackson, the owner of a Kentucky firm called iGate.

Jackson has pleaded guilty to bribing an elected official, whom he identified as Jefferson. He is serving a seven-year sentence. Jackson and a former Jefferson aide, Brett Pfeffer, tried to rescue the Nigerian deal by recruiting a Virginia businesswoman to invest $3.5 million in the project.

The woman, Lori Mody, went to the FBI after she said she was defrauded in the deal and named Jefferson as a conduit to Jackson.

“Lori Mody went to the FBI because she thought Brett Pfeffer and Vernon Jackson defrauded her,” Trout said.

Jefferson has pleaded innocent to 16 public corruption charges including bribery, conspiracy, money laundering and racketeering. Prosecutors allege that he used his influence as a congressman to push projects in West Africa in return for payments to himself and family members.

Jefferson claims he was acting as a private businessman in the arrangements and that he committed no “official act” such as appropriating government money, voting or introducing legislation on the projects.

On Monday, Trout filed a motion asking that he be allowed to use secretly recorded government tapes that will not be introduced by the prosecution.