Thursday, February 19, 2009

Vince Fumo laid low

It has not been a good couple of months for the man who once was wielded as much power as anyone in Pennsylvania.

Former Sen. Vince Fumo, the so-called “Vince of Darkness,” has been laid low.

But likely nothing hurt quite like yesterday.

Fumo, on trial in federal court on corruption charges, engaged in a bitter back and forth with a federal prosecutor. Fumo at one point alleged FBI agents were harassing the elderly mother of one of his key aides. It brought a heated objection.

Likewise, Fumo also was angered and objected to characterizations of his actions by the feds.

But his nadir was yet to come. After Fumo finished his grueling testimony, his one-time mentor and lawyer, the legendary Richard Sprague, took the stand.

Fumo has often referred to Sprague as a father figure.

The former senator had banked much of his defense on corruption charges, including obstruction of justice charges tied to wiping e-mails off his computers, by saying he had gotten the go-ahead for such actions from his lawyers, including Sprague.

That gamble went south yesterday, when Sprague testified he offered no such advice. More than that, he also denied ever advising Fumo that he did not have to save e-mails if he had not specifically been subpoenaed, as Fumo had claimed. A second Fumo attorney, Robert Scandone, testified much the same thing.

It’s a huge loss for Fumo. But it’s more than that. Sprague testified he and Fumo had a “father-son relationship.” But he also said something else. He said he and the senator were no longer friends.

Dark days for the “Vince of Darkness.”

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home