JACKSON - A federal judge on Saturday gave final instructions to jurors who began deliberations on a bribery case against a Mississippi Supreme Court justice and a prominent lawyer accused of using his wealth to buy favorable verdicts.
U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate reminded the jury, which has heard testimony over three months, that their verdicts must be unanimous. He said each defendants is separately charged and should be judged independent of the others.
Jury deliberation began about 11:35 a.m. Saturday.
Paul Minor, one of the state's most prominent and politically active attorneys, is accused of using cash, loans and gifts to secure favorable decisions in cases before Justice Oliver Diaz Jr. and former Gulf Coast judges John Whitfield and Wes Teel. All four defendants have pleaded innocent to bribery and fraud charges.
Minor has pleaded innocent to an additional count of racketeering.
The defendants say the charges are politically motivated.
The jury is faced with 17 counts among the four defendants. Minor is named in 14 counts; Whitfield in five; Diaz, four; and Teel, three.
The jury heard closing arguments Thursday and Friday. They were delayed in getting the case Saturday because one of Wingate's clerks got sick and the government and defense attorneys had to verify the list of exhibits before deliberations could begin.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Ainsworth told jurors Friday that the evidence established all four defendants' guilt. Ainsworth dismissed defense claims that the money from Minor was campaign contributions or help for his friends.
"It is a bribe. They hid it and they concealed it," Ainsworth said. "These defendants accepted the money to influence their decisions."
Minor's attorney, Abbe Lowell, said with Minor's net worth topping $12 million he had no reason to bribe judges. But Ainsworth said the question was not Minor's pad-ding his bank account.
"We have established another reason. Mr. Minor wants to win," he said. "This evidence clearly shows that he was giving money to influence the actions of these judges."
Lowell said the government was so adamant about convicting Minor that "they just ignored the truth."
Lowell said the government was mistaken about the intent of Minor and the other defendants.
"Paul did not achieve success for his clients by getting favors but through hard work," Lowell said. "Now he has to fight the establishment to save his life."
Jackson attorney Robert McDuff, who represented Diaz, said the justice recused himself from Minor's cases before the Mississippi Supreme Court.
"Where is the proof that Oliver Diaz did anything in exchange for Paul's help?" McDuff asked. "He has passed up opportunity after opportunity after opportunity to help Paul Minor."
McDuff said the government focused on three cases before the Supreme Court and said Diaz participated in none of them.
Attorneys for Whitfield and Teel also argued that the government failed to prove its case.
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