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John Adkisson / Reuters
John Edwards has worn what appears to be the same green tie all week to court in Greensboro, N.C. Asked whether it's his 'lucky tie,' Edwards replied, 'I'm not saying.'
Updated at 4:49 p.m. ET: The jury in the campaign finance corruption trial of former presidential candidate John Edwards signaled Thursday that it may not be near a verdict.
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Stacey Klein is a producer for NBC News. M. Alex Johnson is a reporter for msnbc.com. Follow M. Alex Johnson on Twitter and Facebook. |
As they broke for lunch on their fifth day of deliberations in U.S. District Court in Greensboro, N.C., jurors asked Judge Catherine Eagles for 20 more exhibits to produced for review.
Most of the requested exhibits relate to money provided by the late Fred Baron, the finance chief of Edwards' 2008 presidential campaign, that was used to pay for hotel rooms, private jets and other transportation expenses rung up as campaign officials moved Edwards' mistress, Rielle Hunter, around the country in an attempt to conceal their affair from the public.
The new request was so expansive that Eagles asked jurors whether it would simply be quicker to have all of the trial's exhibits — more than 500 documents — sent to the jury room. The foreman replied, "Sounds like a good idea," and Eagles agreed to provide all of them.
The jury headed home for the day without reaching a verdict Thursday afternoon. Deliberations resume Friday morning.
Edwards, a former U.S. senator from North Carolina who was the 2004 Democratic vice presidential nominee, is charged with six felony counts of accepting about $1 million in illegal and unreported campaign donations from Baron and billionaire heiress Rachel "Bunny" Mellon at a time when federal campaign donations were capped at $2,300.
- Full trial coverage on msnbc.com
- Full transcripts of closing arguments
- Analysis by Hampton Dellinger
Hampton Dellinger, a legal analyst for NBC news and msnbc.com, said the request made it clear that there's "no verdict in sight."
Watch US News videos on msnbc.com
Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards has faced public and private challenges throughout his life and career.
The four-week trial established that the Federal Election Commission — which cleared the contributions in its audit of Edwards' campaign — and the Justice Department were unable to agree on whether the donations from Mellon and Baron constituted campaign contributions subject to regulation under a 1971 election law. And the "jury can't yet, either," Dellinger said.
As the deliberations have stretched on, scores of reporters and camera crews outside the courthouse have taken to speculating on the significance of even minor clues.
Wednesday, one reporter was overheard asking whether it meant anything that three of the jurors had shown up wearing orange.
And after Edwards showed up Thursday wearing what appeared to be the same green tie he's been wearing all week, a reporter asked him whether it was his "lucky tie."
Edwards responded, "I'm not saying."
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Leave a Comment:
Hang in there jury so you can Hang this MF.........
But, if the jury is hung, he will skate.
I do not like John Edwards, but the government failed to prove anything. What the government did prove is that Andrew Young kept a lot of the money... and that guy walks.... this is not justice, its a witch hunt at the tax payers expense.
He's a sleazebag, but he's gonna walk on this one.
Edwards is contemptible, and I fell for him at one point. Politically, of course. However I don't believe the government proved it's case and I think it's insane for Young, who did at least as much or more wrong, and ended up with most of the money, is allowed to skate so that they can go after Edwards. He's already been judged as morally reprehensible in the eyes of the public. It doesn't mean it was illegal.
Funny, though, how the Supreme court can make it OK for Super Pacs to contribute unlimited amounts from anonymous donors. I think that is the worst thing that has happened in politics in modern times. Just hand the country to the mega rich and the corporations on a tray. That disgusts me way more than Edward's sleazy morals.
Roger, your are 100% correct.
No matter what you think of Edwards, he is a sorry man and human being, his ego must be as big as all out doors, but when you listen to what went on during the trial, the Prosecution did not prove the case. The jury is doing it's job trying to decide if they did or bot but I don't think they did.
Hung jury ???
Let me get this straight: one sitting president lies to the American people, spends billions on a needless war, gets our young soldiers killed, crippled, tortured...signs secret memos to spy on us and gets re-elected to office and then after leaving office writes a couple of books and makes a few extra millions. Another guy, who wants to be president, doesn't tell his wife about an affair, and doesn't report money that never went to him directly, and which his number one guy kept 95% of and yet, he's now being tried for crimes???? Oh America, America, how low have you fallen!!!
It appears the Bush family was a little more "connected". Oh....and have a whole lot of money.
So now the jury will try to make a forensic analysis of the evidence to determine innocence or guilt. Try some common sense for a change.
Bunny Mellon: "Oh that John Edwards is such a cutie. I don't have anything to do with this extra fun money I saved. I think I will give him $500,000 as a gift."
Young: "Theres no better choice than John Edwards for president. I will open up my family and home to his crazy girlfriend because he is the best for America."
Rielle: "John Edwards just keeps spending thousands of dollars on me because he's a sweetie!"
John Edwards: "I don't know any of them. I don't recall anything after i dropped acid in 1968"
The Jury: "let's see, he's running for president so Bunny Mellon just happens to have some extra cash laying around that she is sending to millionaires as gifts. Edward's campaign manager takes the money and spends most of it on himself. No problem there, then Rielle gets a new car, travels, dines and dances away $100,000 because John Edwards always takes care of his friends. Makes sense to me. John Edwards says he doesn't know anything about it. He never heard of Bunny, Young or Rielle."
The Verdict: "Not guilty. The man is presidential material. We want an immediate recount of the 2008 presidential election and demand John Edwards be sworn in as president."
Lol!!! Hilarious.
I guess my question would be, if it was not a campaign contribution, then it was a gift. As a gift, he should pay a gift tax for amounts over 13K per year. If he is found innocent of campaign froud, I would wager that there will be a tax evasion charge next.
recipients of bona fide gifts are not taxed on those gifts in the United States.
The person who gives a gift in excess of 13K a year to a person is responsible for any gift tax, not the person who receives it. Bunny Mellon paid the gift tax according to the federal authorities. She probably wouldn't have if the investigation had not happened, but she has good accountants and legal counsel, and once the investigation began she declared the money as a gift, and paid the gift tax.
Given the fact Bunny Mellon paid a gift tax to the IRS on the money in question I can't believe they have not come back not guilty.
I don't know if that was admitted into evidence. The federal authorities have admitted to the court that the gift tax was paid, but I;m not sure if the Judge allowed that information to go to the jury.
I too think this guy is a big jerk. But I am not sure they proved their case.
He's a low life dirt-bag with an exalted opinion of himself he is guilty! Give him 15 years to think it over.
I don't know enough about law to know if the prosecutors proved their case against John Edwards, but I think enough came out in the news about how sleazy and disgusting his behavior is. I guess that doesn't make him guilty in the eyes of the law, despite the huge amounts of money that went to fund his slut and her lifestyle. Johnny boy had young children with his wife, Elizabeth! Was anything mentioned about them and the impact of this on them then and now? And what about the dutiful daughter who accompanied him to court every day? What is that all about? I think it is sad that Elizabeth Edwards died in the midst of all of this. Johnny boy is shameful, and deserves to spend several years, at the very least, in jail.
Yes John Edwards is pond scum, but that is not a crime.
The case should have never been brought against him. The government never proved their case, in fact they never had a real case to begin with. It's not illegal to give your girlfriend hush money. The money didn't come from Edwards so it was a weak case to begin with.
So, the parallel in my mind is the case against Clinton, who was prosecuted while POTUS, ostensibly for LYING about his relationship with Monica. Did Johnny LIE about what the money was being used for if it was being funneled through Andrew Young, or was he in fact ignorant about the money that his buddy had in abundance for his sidekick?
All the prosecution managed to prove is that John Edwards is the scum of the earth. But being a pathological narcissist and a douche bag of the worst kind is not illegal.
John Edwards case is public news to help boost the 8% approval ratings of the congress and senate?
Even though a person is max at a $5000 donation to a political person running for office, they misrepresent and use super packs to accomplish donating an illegal amount of money..
If it were the average citizen a judge would not consider this a good cause for illegal contributions, just a scheme.
At the end of the election and if history repeats itself, even if John Edwards is found guilty, the new president will give him a presidential pardon? I'll bet on it !
It appears that this jury will either fine mr edward not guilty or be a hung jury ! Either way it will be a fair verdict the government never proved their case !
Please wrap this one up!! It's too difficult to see John Edwards WALK...just give the verdict and slap him on the hand. He'll never rise to power because he is unprincipled. Ms. Hunter, are you proud you should be, RIGHT? The only thing good about John Edwards is no longer with him- his wife.
The prosecution had no compelling legal case. Their strategy was to paint Edwards as a lousy, cheating husband with a sick wife and hope that would make the jury disregard the facts and the law and convict him. If the jury buys the snake oil the prosecution is selling, the case will be overturned on appeal due to reversible error on the part of the judge.
Long Haul??? This DEMOCRATIC FOOL IS GUILTY AS SIN!! Just another DEMOCRAT that cannot keep his pants ZIPPED UP and his MOUTH SHUT!! Look at Bill Clinton, Jesse Jackson,etc, etc, etc. There's not ENOUGH space to list them all! This JERK was going to be the VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES??? The DEMOCRATS ARE SCRAPING THE BOTTOM OF THE BARREL....JUST LOOK AT OBAMA! Mr. NO EXPERIENCE!! Michelle OBAMA'S sense of BIGOTRY has done nothing except create another RACE WAR within the U.S. Her lame AS$ husband has done nothing more than create a sense of CLASS WARFARE AS WELL!! Edwards, Jackson, both OBAMA's can all ROT IN HELL AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED!!
Well, I am happy for you that you are from the righteous side of the spectrum. Yes siree, none of the 'publicans has ever been caught up in any sort of sexual scandal. Oops, except those with the same sex. Oh yeah, and they never killed anyone with their wars for fun and funds.
John Edwards is the scum of the earth. He can never be humiliated enough for what he did to his wife and family. Rielle also proved herself to be some sort of special trash with her pictorial for GQ. She claims that she didn't know they would be racy but she didn't look too upset or forced to be posing without any pants on.
That said, I don't think he did anything illegal and should be sentenced to no one paying attention to him for the rest of his disgusting life.
Oh and Tomkat, you seem to be the one bent on class warfare. You watch too much FOX and seem to be a tad paranoid. Another crybaby Republican. If it isn't 100% your way, the whole country is doomed? Grow up. Every time Obama tries to compromise, you folks claim he is caving. I am so tired of you crybabies. Now that we finally have an adult in the WH we should all be behind him and try to move this country forward instead of acting like a bunch of cranky 4th graders who need a nap!
Having had a cheating spouse I will say that Edwards is a low life!! Anyone who cheats on their spouse is in my opinion a low life and they will answer to a higher power eventually for their actions. That being said the only thing that I am sure the prosecution did prove was that he was a cheater and had people who helped cover up that he was a cheater, cheating is immoral not illegal. Would I trust Edwards as a president well I don't trust the one we have now, sadly enough when put in a place of power it seems to go to peoples heads and they often become corrupt just to get there. And for anyone who wishes to slam me for being a republican I am neither a republican or dumocrate I am independent both parties have some corrupt things going on in them in my opinion.
Edwards is nothing but a scumbag ambulance chasing lawyer. He ruined several good doctors' reputations by smearing them through the mud on frivilous cases but cried his way to a win. He deserves what I hope the jury gives him. Edwards cares about nobody but himself.
Surprise anyone? Americans can't agree on anything these days - just like Congress.
Clintom walked so why shouldn't Edwards walk. Equal Justice under the law