KTUU.com | Alaska's news and information source | Defense rests its case in Anderson trial

Defense rests its case in Anderson trial

by Bill McAllister
Thursday, July 5, 2007

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The defense rested its case today in the trial of Tom Anderson without calling the former Alaska legislator to the stand.

Anderson 's attorney says his client is guilty of nothing more than seeking outside consulting work while serving in the state House of Representatives.

A jury could begin deliberations on Anderson's public corruption case as soon as tomorrow afternoon.

After closing arguments tomorrow, the jury will decide if Anderson is guilty of any of seven felony counts or whether the government failed to prove its case that he sold his vote on corrections-related matters.

Defense attorney Paul Stockler says the federal government acted dishonestly two years ago when it first sought to alert then Rep. Tom Anderson that he was under investigation for bribery, extortion and money laundering.

According to the defense, Anderson's first contact with the FBI came on a voice mail message on June 13, 2005, which Anderson says he transcribed.

According to Anderson, a man identifying himself as Bart Bodett left the message, which said in part, "it's about a federal appointee, and we're looking for your input on the matter. And also because of your fantastic stance before in the past of being such a friend of peace officers and law enforcement, our SAC" -- meaning special agent in charge -- "would like to meet with you, as well."

Instead, Stockler says that when Anderson showed up the next day at FBI headquarters in downtown Anchorage, he was shown giant photos of himself and was played audio of himself conferring with government informant Frank Prewitt and Anderson's alleged co-conspirator, Bill Bobrick, who already has pled guilty to bribing the lawmaker.

Anderson is accused of conspiring with Bobrick to set up a sham business for a political Web site that was never created, with Anderson allegedly taking more than $25,000 in FBI sting money that he and Bobrick thought came from a private prison firm.

Stockler says work on the Web site did not proceed after June 14, 2005 because FBI Special Agent Mary Beth Kepner ordered Anderson to drop it.

Called by Stockler to testify, Kepner said Anderson was free to do whatever he wanted with the Web site, testimony that Stockler strongly contradicted in talking with reporters later.

Stockler says the government has produced no evidence that Anderson agreed to a conspiracy on a specific date and he says Anderson never linked the money he was getting to any actions he was performing on behalf of the corrections company.

U.S. District Judge John Sedwick did not allow testimony that the defense says would have established that Anderson was talking to people about his plans for the Web site, thereby demonstrating its validity. The judge said he would not allow Anderson, in effect, to testify through others.

Despite that setback, Stockler says he's confident of winning the case.

On the stand today, state Rep. Bob Roses, who succeeded Anderson in the House, apparently was starting to relay a discussion he had with Anderson about the Web site, when the prosecution objected and the judge sustained the objection.

The judge did make another significant rulings. He barred testimony by Paul Fuhs, a former state commissioner, who the defense says would have testified that Anderson told him at a 2004 public meeting on corrections issues that he was appearing there on Bobrick's behalf, thus countering the notion that Anderson was trying to hide the relationship because it was criminal.

The defense also wanted to play more of the covert recordings made by the government, saying in some cases that it would speak to bias against Anderson. Judge Sedwick disallowed that, saying the government is not on trial, but Stockler said as far as he's concerned, it is.

Contact Bill McAllister at bmcallister@ktuu.com