John Edwards Found Not Guilty on One Charge, Judge Declares Mistrial on Rest in Corruption Case
- Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:42pm by
Madeleine Morgenstern
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AP
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — John Edwards was acquitted on one charge of campaign finance fraud and a mistrial was declared on five other counts Thursday when jurors said they couldn’t decide if he illegally used money to hide his pregnant mistress while he ran for president.
The monthlong trial exposed a sordid sex scandal that dashed Edwards’ White House aspirations in 2008, and the jury’s decision came on a confusing day.
The judge initially called jurors in to read a verdict on all six counts, before learning that they had only agreed to one. About an hour later, the jury sent the note to the judge saying it had exhausted its discussions.
It was not immediately clear whether prosecutors would retry Edwards on the other counts.
When the not guilty verdict was read, Edwards choked up, put a single finger to his lip and took a moment to compose himself. He turned to his daughter, Cate, in the first row and smiled.
When the judge declared the mistrial and discharged the jury, Edwards hugged his daughter, his parents and his attorneys.
The jury reached a verdict on count three, which involved to $375,000 given by elderly heiress Rachel “Bunny” Mellon in 2008. The other counts dealt with $350,000 Mellon gave in 2007, money from wealthy Texas attorney Fred Baron, filing a false campaign finance report and conspiracy.
Jurors did not talk to the media as they left the courthouse.
The trial recounted the most intimate details of Edwards’ affair with Hunter, including reference to a sex tape of the two together that was later destroyed. It also rehashed the elaborate cover-up that involved his most trusted aide, the aide’s wife, and Baron and Mellon.
It featured testimony that sometimes read like political thriller, as aide Andrew Young described meeting Edwards on a secluded road, and Edwards warning him, “you can’t hurt me.” There was also the drama of John Edwards’ wife, Elizabeth, tearing her shirt off in front of her husband in a rage after a tabloid reported the affair.
Edwards was accused of masterminding a plan to use the money to hide Hunter from the media and from his breast cancer-stricken wife. Prosecutors said Edwards knew of the roughly $1 million being funneled to former aide Andrew Young and Hunter and was well aware of the $2,300 legal limit on campaign donations.
In closing arguments, prosecutor Bobby Higdon used Edwards’ own campaign rhetoric about the need for the rich and poor to have an equal say in elections – what he called uniting the “two Americas.”
“Campaign finance laws are designed to bring the two Americas together at election time,” Higdon said. “John Edwards forgot his own rhetoric.”
Edwards‘ attorneys said prosecutors didn’t prove that Edwards knew that taking the money violated campaign finance law. They said he shouldn’t be convicted for being a liar, and even if he did know about some of the money, it was a gift, not a campaign contribution.
“This is a case that should define the difference between a wrong and a crime … between a sin and a felony,” attorney Abbe Lowell told the jury. “John Edwards has confessed his sins. He will serve a life sentence for those.”
They also said the money was used to keep the affair hidden from his wife, not to influence his presidential bid.
Neither the Democrat nor his mistress took the witness stand during about four weeks of testimony.
Baron died in 2008 and Mellon, who is 101 years old, did not testify.
Edwards met Hunter in a New York hotel bar in 2006 and they spent the night together. She soon joined his campaign, and despite a lack of filmmaking experience, the politician arranged a $250,000 contract for her to make a series of behind-the-scenes documentaries from the campaign trail.
Word of the affair eventually got back to Edwards’ wife. On Dec. 30, 2006, the day Edwards officially announced his bid for president at an event in his hometown of Chapel Hill, Elizabeth Edwards bumped into Hunter for the first time and became visibly upset, according to testimony. She told her husband to get rid of her, and while Hunter officially left the campaign, John Edwards continued to meet with her on the road.
Hunter became pregnant in the summer of 2007. As Hunter’s belly began to show that September, tabloid reporters began tailing her. Within weeks, the Youngs had set up Hunter in a $2,700-a-month rental home not far from the Edwards estate in Chapel Hill, using the donated money.
In October 2007, a day after a tabloid reported the affair, Elizabeth Edwards blew up at her husband, according to testimony from former adviser Christina Reynolds. Edwards’ now-deceased wife stormed away from her husband at a private hangar, collapsing into a ball on the pavement. After composing herself in a nearby ladies room, Elizabeth Edwards ripped off her shirt and bra and screamed, “You don’t see me anymore!” As staffers scrambled to cover her up and whisk her into a car, her husband boarded a jet and headed to a campaign event in South Carolina.
That December, in an attempt to contain the scandal, Young issued a statement claiming the baby was his. Prosecutors presented phone records showing Edwards and Young – and Young and Baron – talked with each other that day and claimed they conspired to come up with the plan.
About a month later, Edwards’ presidential campaign began to fold with poor showings in the early presidential primary states. Even before he officially suspended his presidential campaign at the end of January 2008, Edwards had begun wooing the campaigns of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton for a spot in their administration, perhaps as vice president.
Meanwhile, Hunter was on the run with the Youngs. Baron let them stay at his vacation mansion in Aspen, Colo., and paid for them to live in a $20,000-a-month manor in Santa Barbara, Calif. Hunter gave birth to Francis Quinn Hunter in February 2008.
Records at trial showed Baron paid Hunter a $9,000 monthly cash allowance, on top of providing flights on private jets and stays at luxury resorts.
The deposits began in June 2008 – several months after Edwards ended his White House run – and continued until December 2008, two months after Baron died.
The timing of the payments may have been important. The defense argued most of the money was spent after Edwards ended his presidential bid. Prosecutors claim Edwards was still seeking the Democratic vice presidential nomination or a future appointment as attorney general.
Although Edwards‘ attorneys have conceded he had some limited knowledge of Baron’s support for Hunter, they deny he knew anything about $725,000 provided to Young by the wealthy heiress Mellon, an ardent supporter of Edwards’ campaign.
Edwards admitted to the Hunter affair in August 2008. Days later, he met with Young briefly on a secluded road near the Edwards estate outside Chapel Hill. According to Young’s testimony at the trail, the two talked about the secret checks Mellon had provided to the campaign aide.
“I didn’t know about these, did you?” Edwards said, according to Young.
Worried he was being taped, Young lied and said no. Young told Edwards he had kept evidence of the cover-up, including voicemails, emails and the tape that purportedly showed Edwards and Hunter having sex. He said he threatened to go public if Edwards‘ didn’t come clean about the baby.
“You can’t hurt me, Andrew,” Edwards told Young as he opened the door to get out, Young said. “You can’t hurt me.”
Edwards announced he was the father of Francis Quinn Hunter in January 2010, nearly two years after she was born and his candidacy ended.
Elizabeth Edwards died in late 2010.
The jurors, whose identities were withheld throughout the trial, asked to see dozens of trial exhibits during deliberations, relating to Mellon and Baron’s donations. Some jurors raised eyebrows in recent days by wearing matching colored shirts to court, and one alternate juror was said to be flirting with Edwards. Eagles warned the jury on its sixth day of deliberations not to discuss the case in small groups.
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Comments (86)
lylejk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 6:02pmThe only thing I see John Edwards being guilty of is a Cad. Last I check, being a cad (a-hole if you will or sob) isn’t unconstitutional. What a waste of money and resources and there should be mud in the prosecutor’s eyes. Let’s go on folks. :)
Report Post »turkey13
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 6:51pmI agree he was guilty but the state knew that this form of playing with campaign money is standard procedure for all parties in DC. Even if he had been found guilty big deal, he is on Obamas pardon list
Report Post »poorrichard09
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 7:56amWhy should we believe anything this dirtbag says? You watch, it a few weeks we‘ll find out he’s hooking up with the female juror he was flirting with.
Report Post »LeadNotFollow
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:59pm…
Report Post »Did anyone really think this millionaire ambulance chasing lawyer would ever do any prison time?
This trial was a waste of time and money.
Therightsofbilly
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 8:32pmAhh, but it was worth it for no other reason than it made him endure the shame of the whole thing. And it showed the world who he really is. Or at least the part of the world that didn’t already know.
Let us not forget that John Kerry, in his infinite wisdom, and total lack of judgement, almost made this sleaze-ball the 2nd most powerful man in the world.
Kind of puts things in a different light, doesn’t it?
Anyone that could even consider Edwards for a running mate should never be in charge of an actual country, let alone hold a senate seat.
Report Post »AUsername
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:59pmWhat about John Corzine stealing 1.6 billion from customers at MF Global put that bastard in prison now!
Report Post »rfycom
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:58pmI tell you what Edwards and Beck got me wanting to turn gay they both so pretty.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 6:07pm@rfycom
Don’t forget to shop at GayCPennies….. : )
Report Post »southernORcobra
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:56pmAs usual a democrap weasel gets away with whatever the hell they want.
Report Post »Exrepublisheep
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 8:14pmJohn Ensign. David Vitter. Just off the top of my head. But I’m sure repubes appreciate your ignorance and willingness to look silly in public.
Report Post »Cherianne
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:53pmWhat do you want to bet that NOW since since he’s been acquitted Diane Sawyer@ABC, CBS, NBC and the likes will refer to John Edwards as a DEMOCRAT…something they have failed to do EACH AND EVERY newscast I have seen on the man.
Report Post »hi
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:53pmLawyers that sue doctors are going to hell.
Just kidding, but who can stand them?
Report Post »football lady
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:39pmIf it makes some of you feel better, this jerk has lost what is more important to him than anything — his political career. It is toast thank goodness! I cannot believe he didn’t know — he’s not stupid. I believe it is likely he set others up to take blame. But, it is done.
Now, what was up with the dress code for the 4 alternates. Attention getting? Not mature thinking on their part. Just my 2 cents worth on that.
Report Post »DisgruntledInClinton
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:45pmWould LOVE to know who the hold-out jurors were. And their reasons. I smell a rat… jury tampering/fixing?
Report Post »Fishmanone
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:31pmI hope the SOB burns in HELL along with OJ!!!!!!!!!!!!
Report Post »65Mustang
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:23pmJustice was not served…slime is slime.
Report Post »TheEDGE
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 6:55pmAt least now he will quietly ride off into the sunset, never to be heard from again……..right?
Report Post »dadsrootbeer
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:20pmIt is well know that Edwards made his money as a trial lawyer in many cases thought not winnable by stacking the jury with women and then flirting with them during the trial. So as a defendent he did it again with the same result.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:16pmJohn Edwards quote at the court house steps;
“God’s not though with me…..”
I wonder what that really means?
Report Post »TSUNAMI-22
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:25pmHe’s all repentant right now, but wait a week (or at least until his confidence re-inflates his ego).
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:52pmExactly… he’ll back to normal in no time. All the news shows are already back reporting on NYC’s over 16oz soft drink ban. Even MSDNC!
Report Post »3monkeysmomma
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:09pmLaws are only for the peasent class.
Report Post »rickc34
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:16pmWay to take one for the team Holder letting Edwards walk.
Report Post »TXPilot
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:03pmWell, what have we learned today kids???….Perhaps, the moral of this story, is that if you have money and left-wing influence, you tend not to have to pay for your misdeeds. If Edwards was a middle-class or poor Conservative, he would have been in prison for several years now. This just re-affirms,that there is no justice in this world anymore.
Report Post »Walkabout
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:03pmI was hoping that John Edwards would not be convicted. The way I figure it is the donor’s money to piss away down a rat hole. I just can’t believe than 1/3rd to 1.2 the country thought he was electable & desirable as a VP.
Report Post »melbach
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:56pmI’m guessing it was the juror smiling and flirting with Edwards that was the hold out. The man is a disgrace!
Report Post »phrogdriver
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:00pmShe was an alternate juror. They were dismissed yesterday.
Report Post »snoopy
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:56pmI’m not surprised! This is how liberals act.
Report Post »phrogdriver
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:54pmThe fact that this case is not a slam dunk proves what I have always believed: Campaign finance laws are designed for two purposes: 1) Protect the ruling class and 2) ensure that no viable third party will ever be able to generate enough money to challenge the ruling class.
Report Post »CatB
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:43pmExactly and this “trial” is just more wasted taxpayer money.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:52pmThat‘s exactly how Zimmerman’s trial will go.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:54pmExcept for the riots that will follow after Zimmerman walks….
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:03pmNegative.
Zimmerman is not a celebrity in his own right. He does not look good in handcuffs and jailhouse orange (remember, this corrupt system allowed Edwards to to get his mugshot in a suit and tie, something not afforded to the rest of us), so Zimmerman must be guilty of something or he wouldn’t be in shackles..
And there is the race factor the liberal media will be pressuring the jury with.
Zimmerman will hang.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:22pm@Wat Tyler
“Zimmerman is not a celebrity in his own right.”
Funny, I’ve seen more news coverage and gatherings of people in the Zimmerman-Martin issue than John Edwards ever received.
Also, we don’t hang people anymore. Well, we don’t but, you might.
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:32pmWhat a stupid response.
I didn’t see any paparazzi or news reporters following Zimmerman around before the Martin incident.
Just in case you are too thick-headed and dense to figure it out, the “hanging” statement is figurative.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:43pm@Wat Tyler
Far be it from me NOT to take a Sociacommiarxist statement(s), like yours, for granted.
BTW, what is your avatar? It kind of looks like a young Marcus Aurelius. Not being snide on this question. : )
Report Post »hi
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:51pmLol!!!
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 10:02pmI am curious how anything I said could be taken for a “Sociacommiarxist statement”. Please explain. Because I tell the way it is? You need a lesson in political science if you interpret it that way.
I’m not a flag waving sheeple? Put the flag away. The USA you once knew is dead. It’s now the USSA. It’s fighting time.
BTW-You’re not far off on the avatar. You missed it by about 30years. It’s Caracalla. His expression here reflects my attitude about BS. And I, too, would send them to the lions if I only could..
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:24am@Wat Tyler
Well, you say… “Put the flag away. The USA you once knew is dead. It’s now the USSA.”
That sounds pretty much like a surrendering Sociacommiaxist to me. I don’t need a lesson in YOUR political science class. You just make yourself comfortable in the nearest FEMA Camp and keep talking about how the US Flag is no more and dead. After WE win, we will find a nice plot for you next to Karl Marx and JZSaul. : )
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 9:12amAre you threatening me? You really are a complete buffoon who is not worth the time responding to.
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 9:18amTelling me to shut up out of fear of a FEMA camp pretty much sounds like surrender on your part to me, unless you’re one of them.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:52pmMay 2012: John Edwards wins North Carolina…..
Nov 2012: Barack Obama losses North Carolina…..
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:35pmNegative.
RINO Romney loses because of GOP’s disrespect of Ron Paul. And well deserved, also.
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:39pmYou’ll see.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:56pm@Wat Tyler
Oh, now I get it. You’re a frustrated Ron Paul supporter that would rather see 4 more years of BHO.
I also now get why you usually start a sentence with “negative”.
“What something is, is what it extends”. And you are a very negative person… aren’t you?
Report Post »fb-stopthesocialism.us
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 6:44pmIf Romney loses NC, it’s because we are chocked full of Massholes, New Yorkers, Vermonters, and Mid-Westerns escaping their over-taxed, under-valued environment then coming here voting the same damn way expecting different results. I’ve been wanting Mitt “The Fixer” Romney for a decade now. Get him in and he will fix things so companies do want to come back, on their own accord, not because a Marxist regime (including UN) forces them.
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 10:16pmAttack the messinger all you want with your half @ss opinions, Monky. I expect as much from the mob, and herd. Some people can’y handle the truth. Theyh don’t like people saying things that conflict with their world-view.
It makes them uncomfortable. Like small children. Too bad. It’s time to wake up and pull your head out.
It’s not going to change a thing. The demise of a once great nation is in the stars. Liberalism and karma at work.
Report Post »West Coast Patriot
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 10:22amRon Paul is going to win the nomination. Can’t you guys see that? Keep listening and believing the MSM. The convention in Tampa is going to make history.
Report Post »EqualJustice
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:51pmSo will they have ANOTHER TRAIL? I think this was rigged from day one, with all the discussion about jurors and all. :(
Report Post »raderby
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:51pmClint Eastwood movie title says it all:
“Hang ‘Em High”
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:32pm@raderby
[Clint Eastwood movie title says it all: “Hang ‘Em High”]
Wasn’t the person hanged in “Hang ‘Em High” (not guilty) innocent?
Just saying….
Report Post »Wat Tyler
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:50pmJust a guess:
My guess is that the majority of that jury was women. Why?
First of all, women worship celebrities. Look at the stupid shows like “Entertainment Tonight”, etc.
Second, Edwards has a nice haircut, looks good in a suit, and now has a “bad boy” image.
What more can an airhead, celebrity worshiping bimbo want? She simply cannot convict a man so handsome.
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:07pm@Wat Tyler
“What more can an airhead, celebrity worshiping bimbo want? ”
MONEY!!!!
Report Post »Popp40
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 5:37pmHow long will it be before one of these women writes a book about the whole ordeal………
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 6:04pm@Popp40
Several are most likely already doing just that either individually, as a group or both. : )
Report Post »Rational Man
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:50pmNot suprising. If they had charged him with being a cruel, egotistical, lying, heartless ba**ard, he would have been convicted. But he wasn’t…………
Report Post »Cemoto78
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:45pmThis slimebag will pay up sooner or later.
Report Post »phrogdriver
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:58pmSomehow, karma never seems to catch up to guys like him.
Semper Fi, brother.
Report Post »phrogdriver
Posted on May 31, 2012 at 4:59pmOf course, the Republican in Illinois who did pretty much the same thing will go to prison. That’s what passes for “equal justice” in America today.
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