NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The previous Tennessee Space speaker and his onetime leader of workforce are dealing with a federal prison trial this week, the place some outdated colleagues will likely be much less pleasant at the witness stand than others.
The trial of former Republican Rep. Glen Casada and his former aide, Cade Cothren, guarantees to incorporate testimony from present and previous lawmakers and staffers, some for the federal government, others for the protection. Jury variety starts Tuesday and the trial may just take weeks.
The case accuses the 2 of operating a political mailing crew that Space Republicans employed with taxpayer cash with out realizing Cothren used to be at the back of the company. Casada and Cothren concealed Cothren’s involvement to land the industry after the 2 were burdened out in their management roles in a previous political scandal, in step with prosecutors.
Prosecutors say Cothren created an regulate ego to run the corporate — Matthew Phoenix, of Phoenix Answers.
The 2 face a 20-count indictment for fees together with bribery, kickbacks and conspiracy to devote cash laundering. If convicted, they each and every withstand twenty years in jail. After a couple of delays, the trial comes 3 years when they have been charged and nearly six years when they resigned from their most sensible statehouse posts.
Federal prosecutors plan to name about 15 witnesses, together with Space Speaker Cameron Sexton. Sexton, who succeeded Casada, helped federal government of their investigation and is anticipated to testify. So is former Rep. Robin Smith, who took a plea deal within the scheme. Some lawmakers were subpoenaed for the protection, in step with information reviews.
Legal professionals for Casada and Cothren have mentioned that lawmakers were given the political services and products they paid for, so the secrecy concerning the company’s possession is not a criminal offense.
Casada, a Republican from Williamson County south of Nashville, turned into Space speaker in January 2019. Cothren rose during the legislative workforce ranks to turn out to be his leader of workforce.
Casada significantly left the balloting board open all over a key vote to move a faculty voucher program, ready till one vote flipped so the invoice would move. The discussions to take a look at to persuade lawmakers to modify to “sure” created vast hypothesis about what used to be promised.
Casada resigned from the highest management publish in August 2019 after a no-confidence vote from fellow Space Republicans because of swirling scandals, together with revelations he exchanged sexually particular textual content messages about ladies years in the past with Cothren. No longer lengthy earlier than that, Cothren additionally left his publish over the ones texts and racist texts, coupled with an admission he used cocaine inside of a legislative workplace construction when he held a prior process.
In January 2021, FBI brokers searched the houses, legislative workplaces or either one of Casada, Cothren, Smith and different statehouse figures. Casada remained a state consultant till 2022, when he did not search reelection.
Casada and Cothren have been indicted in August 2022, a couple of months after Smith pleaded to blame.
The charging paperwork say Cothren introduced Phoenix Answers with Smith’s and Casada’s “wisdom and toughen” to supply mail and consulting services and products to lawmakers. Cothren registered the corporate in New Mexico for the reason that state permits nameless registration of LLCs, and rebuffed requests for in-person conferences with Casada’s fellow lawmakers, pronouncing the corporate representatives have been out of state, prosecutors allege.
All 3 claimed the company used to be run via a “Matthew Phoenix,” as Phoenix Answers and corporations managed via Casada and Smith won more or less $52,000 in 2020 from the state in bills related to the taxpayer funded mailer program for lawmakers, the indictment says.
Smith resigned and pleaded to blame to a federal twine fraud price within the Phoenix Answers scheme in March 2022. Smith, who had served as a Republican Space member from Hixson since 2018, “will testify about her illegal settlement” with Casada and Cothren, prosecutors mentioned. She will likely be sentenced after the trial.
Smith informed a couple of Republican lawmakers in 2020 that “Matthew Phoenix and his affiliate, Candice, were given uninterested in dwelling within the Washington, D.C. house and determined to transport again house to New Mexico, the place Phoenix began Phoenix Answers,” prosecutors wrote. Candice used to be portrayed via Casada’s then-girlfriend, they mentioned.
Cothren paid Casada and Smith greater than $35,000 in bribes and kickbacks, the indictment says. Prosecutors have textual content messages between Smith and Cothren about his use of the Matthew Phoenix alias.
Sexton has mentioned he has assisted federal government within the investigation since turning into speaker in 2019. Sexton used to be some of the lawmakers and staffers who testified to the grand jury. Prosecutors say he’s going to testify at trial concerning the necessities of the postage and printing allowance of $3,000 consistent with Space lawmaker.
Cothren’s lawyers have claimed that he helped Sexton in a couple of tactics after Cothren resigned, together with in Sexton’s 2019 bid for speaker, an try to undermine the basis that Space Republicans antagonistic the use of Cothren’s services and products because of his prior scandals. The pass judgement on authorized subpoenas for Sexton’s telephone information associated with the declare.
