Man In Cunningham Bribery Case May Get Prison Release

SAN DIEGO -- Former Poway defense contractor Brent Wilkes, imprisoned in Arizona for bribing former Congressman Randy "Duke'' Cunningham, could be released as early as next week, pending the appeal of his 12-year sentence, it was reported Saturday.

A two-judge federal appeals court panel ordered Wilkes released on bail, ruling that he was unlikely flee, and his appeal raises issues that could lead to the reversal of his conviction, a new trial, or a lesser sentence, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

Wilkes, 53, has been in custody for nearly five weeks since U.S. District Court Judge Larry Burns sentenced him Feb. 19.

Federal public defender Shereen Charlick, who filed the appeal for Wilkes, told the Union-Tribune her client could be out of custody as early as next week. The appeals court ordered Burns to hold a hearing to set Wilkes' conditions for release.

No one at the U.S. Attorney's Office in San Diego, which prosecuted Wilkes, was available to comment to the newspaper on Friday.

Charlick said Wilkes was deprived of a fair trial because word that a grand jury was going to indict Wilkes was leaked to news outlets. She also plans to argue that instructions to the grand jury were flawed.

Mark Geragos, Wilkes' trial lawyer, contended the government was responsible for the leaks. But Burns later said whatever leaks occurred were not prejudicial.

Charlick said Michael Williams, a former high-ranking employee of Wilkes's company, ADCS Inc., should have been given immunity by prosecutors or the court to testify for the defense. Williams said he would invoke his right against self-incrimination without such protection, and ended up not testifying. Wilkes told the newspaper she would argue that prosecutors also committed misconduct in their closing arguments to the jury.

An appellate court ordering someone to be released during pursuit of an appeal is unusual though not unheard of, the Union-Tribune reported.

"This would be a rare instance where the court of appeals reviewed and then reversed a district court's determination about bond," San Diego criminal defense lawyer Pat Hall told the newspaper.

The appeals court must believe there is some merit to Wilkes' arguments, too, he said.

"They would have to have reviewed some of the issues being presented and come to some preliminary conclusions," he said.

Judges Thomas Nelson and A. Wallace Tashima, who ordered Wilkes released on bail, will not necessarily be part of the three-judge panel that will review the case.

Shaun Martin, a law professor at the University of San Diego School of Law who writes a blog on appellate cases, said it was not unusual to see high-profile, white-collar defendants stay free on appeal.

"It tends to suggest I have a decent shot of prevailing on appeal," he said.

Prosecutors filed notice March 21 that they may appeal Wilkes 12-year sentence. They wanted him to do 16 to 25 years in prison, stating that Burns incorrectly applied the federal sentencing guidelines.