By Alex Leary, writer times
Former House speaker Ray Sansom, confers on the left, with his lawyer, Steve Dobson, in Tallahassee on Monday, first day of his trial.
TALLAHASSEE — with his one-time colleagues working in the Capitol building across the street, former House speaker Ray Sansom went on trial Monday for his role in an alleged scheme to build an airplane hangar for a developerhis lawyer, a charge denied vehemently.
Opening statements highlighted the crux of the case, which has been two years in the making: did Sansom sneak $ 6 million in the budget under false pretenses, in effect, stealing taxpayers, or he was doing a public service, providing funding for a building that could be used by emergency officials in his hometown of Destin during a storm?
"When all the dust settles," Leon County Attorney Willie Meggs said the jury, of course, "what is this building is predominantly an aircraft hangar.
Sansom's lawyer, Steve Dobson said there is "no question" developer Jay Odom wanted to use the building at Destin airport, but he said Sansom had no role in planning since the money was appropriated in 2007.
He said pointedly the jury that it was "perfectly legal and appropriate" to Sansom use education dollars, adding it was a practice of senior legislators to enter home projects in the budget.
Dobson "this happened long time immortal in the legislature," he said.
Sansom, R-Destin and Odom were charged with grand theft and conspiracy to commit grand theft. A third co-defendant, former Northwest Florida State College President Bob Richburg, agreed to testify against the two men in exchange for the charges being dropped against him.
Drama of the day was more than the trial began, almost two years since Sansom, Odom and Mcconnells were accused first of what was said. Both sides are arguing the central points for months in pre-trial Court battles.
Still, with a jury in Court, bets were obvious and opening instructions provide a roadmap of how the two sides will continue in the next week or more.
Meggs brought the jury through the genesis of airport construction, showing how Odom once tried to get funding from the State through the city of Destin. Went nowhere. But in the same year, Sansom place the money in the budget State for a building in the same location.
The Prosecutor said he would use e-mail and other records (in a computer point Richburg was taken to court, wrapped in red tape marked "evidence") to show the projects were the same, which Sansom and Odom cooperated and that plans were changed after the St. Petersburg Times began to ask questions.
"A cover-up ensued after a light was shone on this particular project," said Meggs.
In late afternoon, Destin town Manager Greg Kisela testified that there never was an attempt to get funding for an emergency operations centre at the airport before the involvement of Odom.
Kisela also testified that he went to Odom in 2007 and asked about the budget request (the one that went nowhere, because these types of projects sponsored by the legislature were banned in 2007 due to a poor State of economy). "He said he would not be next lease request and basically he would be repackaged as an educational resource," said Kisela.
Meggs says is evidence of an attempt to hide the project.
Time ran out before the Defense could cross-examine Kisela; What will happen when the trial continues at 9 a.m. today.
Sansom 48 years of age, since one of the most powerful men in the State legislature, sat silently by his lawyer throughout the day, although he nodded in agreement with the points in your favor. To reinforce the image of family man of Sansom, his wife and two of his daughters sat behind him.
Odom took a few seats away, and he and Sansom did not make eye contact.
Sansom smiled when circuit judge Terry Lewis, business preventively before jurors were seated, seemed inclined to limit evidence about the work that took in Northwest Florida Sansom State College on the same day he was sworn in as speaker in November 2008. It was this work that first raised questions about Sansom's budget appropriations.
On the other hand, Lewis appeared likely to allow evidence that 2009 Sansom, landed a job as an insurance agent that should money Odom and told investigators he hoped its debt would be "smaller."
Sansom and Odom has an experienced team of Defense and they were well prepared Monday. The lawyers said they would present numerous witnesses who would have appreciated an emergency operations centre at the Airport (despite what some officials say counties) and that the project would have actually been directly beneficial to Odom had crossed the legislator as initially requested.
As Sansom had a "responsibility" to seek money for projects worth, said his lawyer, Odom was entitled as "American" and a "Floridian" to seek the help of elected officials, lawyer Jimmy Judkins said.
"We present to you that by the end of the case, the evidence is overwhelming that he is not guilty of stealing money and he is not guilty of conspiring to steal money and that his verdict will not be guilty of two charges" Judkins said.
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