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« Gas hits record high of $4 per gallon in the Ocean State | Today | Suspended police officer gets 20 years in prison / Photo » May 29, 2008CVS trial: Closing arguments end; jury instructions next
PROVIDENCE -- The jurors in the CVS corruption trial will return to federal court tomorrow morning for final instructions and then begin deliberating the fates of John R. "Jack" Kramer and Carlos R. Ortiz, former vice presidents for the Woonsocket-based drugstore giant. The trial concluded at 2:15 p.m. today following lengthy closing arguments from the defense teams and prosecution. David B. Fein, one of Kramer’s defense lawyers, spent two hours hammering home the point that the allegations against Kramer and Ortiz did not amount to crimes. He whittled away at the prosecution’s case by zeroing in on "lies" and inconsistencies uttered by John A. Celona, the government’s star witness. Fein accused Celona of "giving the government what he thinks they want." Thomas R. Kiley, a lawyer for Ortiz, followed Fein and continued the attack on Celona’s credibility. He told the jurors that Celona talked to government investigators 25 times and spent nearly a week on the witness stand without providing any evidence that he talked to Kramer and Ortiz "about legislation." "They never asked John Celona to do something against his will, to alter his position," on legislation, Kiley said. -- Journal staff writer W. Zachary Malinowski Read more about closing arguments from earlier today. Extra: More on the trial and the Operation Dollar Bill corruption probe. Kiley also underscored that it was Kramer, not Ortiz, who wanted to hire Celona as a $1,000-a-month consultant. And, he said, Ortiz asked Celona whether the state Ethics Commission had approved the consulting agreement. "That’s not an obvious question for a person who is about to engage in a bribe," Kiley said. Kiley said that Ortiz never saw the John Celona State House Report cable television show where Kramer was a frequent guest, and he had no interest in Celona’s role as a public relations guy for CVS. In a 10-minute rebuttal, prosecutor Dambruch seized on Kiley’s characterization of Ortiz. He said that Kiley’s statement offered proof that CVS brought Celona on board as a consultant to influence legislation at the State House. He said that CVS is a "billion-dollar corporation," that did not need to hire a public relations consultant for $12,000 a year. "The one thing, however, he could offer was his position on legislation," Dambruch said. Posted by Mike McKinney CommentsPost a commentPlease be civil. Vicious comments, personal attacks and profanity won't be published. Name and email are required; email address will not publish. |
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ProJo 9 to 5 News Blog
Oct 2005 - March 2006