Federal prosecutors have no “smoking gun” proving that state Sen. Lawrence M. Farnese Jr. bribed a constituent in order to advance his political career, the lawmaker’s attorney told a federal jury this week.
Defense attorney Mark B. Sheppard scoffed at the notion that a May 18, 2011, phone conversation between Farnese and Ellen Chapman is a “smoking gun” proving they engaged in bribery.
Sheppard acknowledged that during the conversation at issue, Chapman sought financial assistance from Farnese for the college tuition of her daughter, Hannah Feldman.
Sheppard also acknowledged the conversation took place during the same time period that Farnese was garnering support for his bid as Democratic leader of the Eighth Ward.
“But one had nothing to do with the other,” Sheppard told the jury of five men and seven women.
Sheppard said Farnese didn’t agree to donate $6,000 towards Feldman’s tuition until May 23, 2011 — five days after the purported “smoking-gun” conversation.
“This was a public figure helping a constituent,” Sheppard said. “It’s the kind of thing we expect our public officials to do every day. Don’t let them make this into something dirty, because it’s not.”
Sheppard continued: “It was a payment to a young lady [Feldman] who lived in his district, worked on his campaign, whose father was an extremely important constituent and whose mother is a committee person.”
Farnese didn’t need to buy Chapman’s vote, because he had the support of many other committee persons to be elected ward leader, Sheppard added.
“Do you bribe one [voter] when you need 30 [votes]?” Sheppard posed.
Chapman’s attorney, Stuart M. Patchen, also scoffed at the notion that the May 18 conversation was “sinister.”
“[Prosecutors] have to prove [a bribe] happened in those eight minutes and they have to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt,” Patchen said.
Patchen insisted there’s no such proof, and he urged jurors to end the “nightmare” prosecutors are putting Chapman through.
“This case will offend your sense of justice, your sense of what’s right and wrong, and what they’re putting [Chapman] through,” Patchen said.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan I. Kravis told jurors there’s ample evidence that Farnese and Chapman engaged in bribery and other unlawful activity during the spring of 2011.
He said the government will present witnesses and documentation proving the defendants violated state and federal laws involving fraud, conspiracy and bribery.
“Senator Farnese wanted to be a ward leader very, very badly,” Kravis noted.
Kravis said the ward-leader position placed Farnese in a better position to advance his political career, and that he bribed Chapman in order to do so.
Kravis also said it’s of no consequence if Chapman didn’t actually vote for Farnese during the December 2011 ward-leader election. “Whether Ms. Chapman followed through on her end [of the bargain] does not make a difference,” Kravis said.
“Both of these defendants are guilty of the crimes they’re charged with,” Kravis emphasized to jurors.
The Eighth Ward is a political subdivision, large
At the time of the alleged incident, Chapman served as an Eighth Ward committee person.
In November, Farnese handily won re-election as a state senator. He has a strong record of support for LGBT causes, including a statewide LGBT civil-rights law and a new probe of the Nizah Morris case.
The trial is expected to run through early next week.
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