Jury Convicts Councilmen, Lobbyist
Sentencing Scheduled For November 9
POSTED: 10:29 am PDT July 18,
2005
UPDATED: 5:57 pm PDT July 18,
2005
SAN DIEGO -- Two councilmen and a lobbyist were convicted Monday of conspiracy, wire fraud and extortion in the so-called "stripper-gate" federal corruption trial.
Sentencing is scheduled Nov. 9 for Councilmen Ralph Inzunza and Michael Zucchet and Las Vegas lobbyist Lance Malone.
The eight-man, four-woman jury, which got the case after 70 days of trial, deliberated four days before convicting the three.They acquitted a fourth defendant, David Cowan, of making a false statement to the FBI.Cowan was an aide to the late Councilman Charles Lewis, who was indicted with his council colleagues in August 2003 but died last August of complications from liver disease.Prosecutors said Inzunza and Zucchet took money from strip club owner Michael Galardi in exchange for a promise to vote for the repeal of San Diego's "no-touch" nude dancing ordinance.Galardi testified that he gave thousands of dollars in cash and checks to the councilmen to try to bribe them.Galardi and the manager of Cheetah's in San Diego, John D'Intino, pleaded guilty in 2003 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.Prosecutors told the jury that Inzunza, Zucchet and Lewis "schemed" to deprive the city of San Diego of honest services by promising to vote for the repeal of "no-touch" after Galardi gave them money for their campaigns.They alleged Cowan did not tell authorities of his discussions with Malone regarding "no-touch" when they first interviewed him after raids at City Hall in May 2003.Attorneys for the councilmen argued that the government failed to prove that there was an "explicit and unambiguous" agreement between the parties to exchange money for votes.Malone's attorney, Dominic Gentile, said his client was misled by FBI informant Tony Montagna into believing that the police department didn't support "no-touch" and wanted the law changed back to less specific "lewd and lascivious" standards.Both Zucchet and Inzunza have been suspended from office, Zucchet's attorney said.
 COUNCIL CORRUPTION |
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