COVERITLIVE.COM

10:05

Craig R. McCoy - Hello all,
We are assembled here, waiting on the jury.

10:06

Craig R. McCoy - This, of course, is to be the final day of the trial before the jury takes up the case.

10:08

Craig R. McCoy -

Dennis J. Cogan, the leader of the defense for former State Sen. Vincent J. Fumo, is expected to complete his closing argument this mornning.
After that, Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert A. Zauzmer is to offer a rebuttal.

10:09

Craig R. McCoy - Then U.S. District Court Judge Ronald L. Buckwalter will instruct the jury on the law and their rules for deliberations. Then the jury of 10 women and two women will retire to deliberate the fate of Fumo and his co-defefendant and close friend, Ruth Arnao.

10:10

Craig R. McCoy - We're underay. Cogan is seeking to persuade the jury that state-paid consultant Howard Cain provided enough legislative-related work to justify his contract.

10:11

Craig R. McCoy - While the prosecution maintains that Cain was in effect Fumo's Karl Rove, Coan is telling the jury that Cain was an expert on Philadelphia port matters.

10:12

Craig R. McCoy - In some case, Cogan says, Cain's political discussions advanced Fumo's policy agenda.

10:14

Craig R. McCoy - Cain testified last November under a deal with the government. He has pleaded guilty to multiple years of tax evasion and is awaiting sentencing.

10:16

Craig R. McCoy - Cogan is arguing that Cain handled a wide variety of public policy matters.

10:18

Craig R. McCoy - As has been the case throughout closing arguments, the courtroom is pretty full, with a fair number of allies of former Sen. Fumo. Still, despite his 30 years of public service, it is striking how few, if any, elected officials have showed up to support their one-time patron.

10:21

Craig R. McCoy - Cogan is reviewing his own cross-examination of Cain from last fall. He is asking the jurors to reconsider Cain's testimony then that Cain had worked on an effort to bring a new Food Distribution Center to Philadelphia, as well as on educational initiatives.

10:23

Craig R. McCoy -

The defense lawyer is arguing that Cain, to win favor from the government, exaggerated the amount of political work he did.

10:24

Craig R. McCoy - Now, Cogan is turning to another state-paid consultant, private detective Frank D. Wallace, Prosecutors contend that Wallace, at Fumo's direction, did a host of political and personal investigatons for the senator.

10:27

Craig R. McCoy - Cogan is reminding jurors that the FBI in its early interview with Wallace wrote down that he told them the "purely personal and political work" he did was done "free of charge."

10:28

Craig R. McCoy - Wallace disavowed those notes on the stand, saying he never said that.

10:28

Craig R. McCoy - Cogan is telling the jurors: trust those notes.

10:29

Craig R. McCoy - In later interviews with the FBI, Wallace said that in fact he was paid for the personal and political.

10:30

Craig R. McCoy -

Now, Cogan is attacking Wallace from a different angle.

10:31

Craig R. McCoy - While Wallace said his investigations of labor leader John Dougherty was politcal in essence, Cogan says the sluething also helped Fumo's policy agenda -- to the extent that Dougherty opposed it. The labor leader and Fumo have been bitter enemies.

10:37

Craig R. McCoy - As far Wallace reportedly saying at one time that he did the personal and political work free, one issue the juror may have to consider is whether Wallace was then fearful that he would face charges himself if he admitted taking state money for non-legislative work. He ended up testifying under a grant of immunity, and told a different story from that in the notes .

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