E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSS
Shawn Rocco / AP
John Edwards last week at the U.S. courthouse in Greensboro, N.C.
Jurors in the campaign finance corruption trial of former presidential candidate John Edwards were sent home for the day on Monday without having reached a verdict.
A third day of deliberations will begin Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. ET in U.S. District Court in Greensboro, N.C., where Edwards — a former U.S. senator and the 2004 Democratic vice presidential nominee — is charged with six felony counts of accepting about $1 million in illegal and unreported campaign donations from two wealthy supporters at a time when individual contributions were limited to $2,300.
Jurors appeared particularly interested in one of those donors, billionaire heiress Rachel "Bunny" Mellon, asking the judge for seven exhibits that appeared to be related to the roughly $750,000 she gave an aide to Edwards to help conceal Edwards' affair with Rielle Hunter, a videographer on his 2008 presidential campaign staff.
Analysis: Possible outcomes for John Edwards
Watch US News videos on msnbc.com
Mellon, who is 101 years old, didn't testify during the trial, but her attorney and financial adviser, Alex Forger, offered extensive testimony that Mellon knew that her donations were intended to fund the "Hunter problem" and weren't given as campaign contributions.
One of the exhibits they sought was a handwritten note from Mellon dated Sept. 17, 2007. Jurors requested a typed version, but U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles denied the request, saying one didn't exist, so they would have to do with the handwritten version. The contents of that note haven't been made public.
More content from msnbc.com and NBC News:
- Mississippi pastor-lawmaker denies endorsing the killing of gays
- Great-grandma: Ready to 'lose' my life protesting
- US war veterans return medals at NATO protest
- Father of 30, by 11 women, wants state child support
- Marijuana grows openly in California towns, not just for medicinal purposes
- Video: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg gets married
Leave a Comment:
The jury has not heard all the evidence they were entitled to hear. The judge tainted the jury by withholding important information.
BW-26...: right, the judge acted as a co-prosecutor in the case, also not allowing the expert testimony of the person who administered the Campaign Finance law to testify, that what Edwards did was not a crime(he was the U.S. commissioner of Elections finance reporting.
i am not clear how giving the jury the original hadwritten note and not a transcripted typed version makes a difference one way or the other (or why the judge did it). Is there a question of content?
eye could discern clearly what the exact charges were but,it looks like to me,he is guilty of illegal campaign funds acceptance,but,innocent of the hush money about an excursion with reille.
i see the the opposite. You can prove he got the money --but not that it was illegal campaign contributions. I don't think there is any law against giving someone money to help deal with a personal problem. Of course, that is the whole point of this trial.
Does anyone see the underlying thread(t) here?
Stupid is as stupid does, lol.
Eye think it's piracy.
If this was hush money shouldn't it be taxed. I believe there is a limit you can give to someone without being taxed. Did he pay taxes on it?
First off was it ever in his LEGAL possession? You don't pay taxes on money you never controlled. Perhaps Mr.Young needs to see a tax lawyer but not John Edwards.
Interestin point. Mr. Young actually had the money --not Mr. Edwards --is it taxable? And if it is ..who is liable for that tax?
Day 2 of deliberations. The longer they take to return a verdict, the more favorable it usually is for the defendant.
Stupid waste of tax payers money. Let him be, he has lost all credibility and will suffer for as long as he lives. Oh yea, no other politician has every done anything like this before...