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Jon Clifton Hinson (March 16, 1942 - July 21, 1995) was a politician from the state of Mississippi.

Hinson was born in Tylertown, Mississippi, and he graduated from the University of Mississippi in Oxford. Hinson was an aide to Representatives Charles Griffin, Democrat, and Thad Cochran, Republican. Hinson was elected to the House of Representatives as a Republican in 1978, rising from relative obscurity when he was 36. Cochran vacated the seat because he was elected to the U.S. Senate.

During his re-election campaign in 1980, Hinson admitted that he had been arrested for committing an obscene act, exposing himself to an undercover policeman, at the Iwo Jima Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery. Hinson denied that he was homosexual and blamed his problems on alcoholism. He said that he had reformed and refused to yield to demands that he resign. He won re-election with 39% of the vote because an independent candidate split the Democrat vote.[citation needed]

Hinson, who was married to Cynthia Hinson, was then arrested on February 4, 1981 and was charged with attempted oral sodomy[1] for performing oral sex on a male employee of the Library of Congress in the restroom of the House of Representatives. He resigned on April 13, 1981, early in his second term. He said that his resignation had been "the most painful and difficult decision of my life." He was succeeded in Congress by Wayne Dowdy, a Democrat, who won the special election held in the summer of 1981.

Soon afterwards, he acknowledged that he was homosexual. His marriage ended, and he became an activist for homosexual causes.

He later helped to organize the lobbying group "Virginians for Justice" and fought against the ban on gays in the military. He also was a founding member of the Fairfax Lesbian and Gay Citizens Association in Fairfax County.

He never returned to Mississippi but lived quietly in the Washington area, first in Alexandria, Virginia and then Silver Spring.

Hinson also disclosed that he survived a 1977 fire that killed nine people at the Cinema Follies, a Washington theater that catered to a gay clientèle. He was rescued from under a pile of bodies -- one of only four men who survived.

In an article for the Washington Blade, a gay newspaper, Hinson wrote that when first elected to Congress, he was "still closeted and into heavy denial."

Hinson died of respiratory failure resulting from AIDS in Silver Spring, Maryland at the age of 53.

Hinson's body was cremated, and the ashes were buried in Tylertown after a private service. Hinson, by then divorced, was survived by a brother, Robert Hinson, in Gulfport, Mississippi.

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David Timothy Dreier (born July 5, 1952), American politician, has been a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives since January 1981, representing California's 26th congressional district (map). He was first elected to the U.S. House at age 28 in 1980.

Dreier's sexual orientation

In the fall of 2004, Dreier was "outed" in print by journalist Doug Ireland in an alternative newspaper, L.A. Weekly, in its issue of September 24–September 30, 2004. The L.A. Weekly reported that Dreier has had a romantic relationship with his longtime chief of staff Brad W. Smith, who collects a $156,600 government salary. Smith collects the highest possible salary allowed by law for a committee staff member and is reportedly the highest-paid chief of staff working for any House of Representatives committee chair. ("By comparison," wrote Ireland, "the chief of staff to the chair of the House Judiciary Committee makes $126,000, while the chief of staff to the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee makes just $100,696.")

The "outing" was a result of Dreier coming under increasing scrutiny from gay rights groups because of what they characterize as an anti-gay voting record in Congress, which includes support of the Defense of Marriage Act (signed by Bill Clinton), as well as votes against gay adoption, and against inclusion of homosexuality as a protected status in hate crime and employment discrimination legislation. As with all "outings" of allegedly anti-gay politicians, the question has arisen as to whether, if the rumors are true, the politician's record reflects hypocrisy, or whether the sexual orientation of politicians is an irrelevant private matter and the "anti-gay" votes merely reflected the wishes of constituents.

Dreier's 1998 and 2000 Democratic opponent, Janice Nelson, alleged that his relationship with Smith had been an open secret for many years. His 2004 opponent, Cynthia Matthews, came out of the closet and demanded that Dreier do the same. Dreier did not publicly respond to these charges, which were discussed on local radio programs in his district. At the time, the mainstream U.S. print media did not cover the story (although the controversy was later, in June 2005, addressed in the British press after it was announced that British prime minister Tony Blair's son Euan would work as an unpaid intern for Dreier's committee during the summer of 2005).

In the midst of the controversy, Dreier voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment on September 30, 2004. He explained his opposition to the amendment by stating that he felt the Constitution was not the appropriate tool for restricting rights. He also has voted against the Flag Desecration Amendment.

Dreier has yet to comment on his sexual orientation.

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Hague has habit of blaming others
By NEIL MODIE
P-I REPORTER

King County Councilwoman Jane Hague's recent arrest on a drunken-driving charge wasn't the first time she has blamed others after finding herself in trouble.

In 2001, when the car Hague was driving collided with a Metro bus in downtown Seattle, the bus driver -- a county employee -- said in a written report that she told him it was his fault. When he disagreed -- and witnesses later confirmed his account of the collision -- Hague reportedly said to him, "Do you know that I'm your King County councilwoman?"
Hague

In 1999, when the King County ombudsman found Hague had violated the county ethics code in 1997, she blamed it on bad advice from the council's attorney -- who flatly denied that she had ever asked for such advice or that he had given it to her. Several other council members were indignant that Hague tried to blame the lawyer.

And when she was arrested on the drunken-driving charge in Bellevue on June 2 -- in an incident that wasn't publicly known until Aug. 21, -- an obscenity-spewing Hague reportedly blamed the arrest on her husband, Ed Springman. He was a passenger in her Mercedes convertible.

A state trooper said in a written report that Hague, 61, "became irate and (used) expletives" and "said it was her husband's fault that she was in the back of a patrol car and being treated like a criminal, and her husband would have to find the best attorney" for her.

When the officer suggested she could speak to a public defender if her husband -- a wealthy Eastside developer -- couldn't find her one, Hague reportedly "stated she would not talk to any second-rate attorney."

A separate report written by a county sheriff's deputy who arrested her said she declared in a slurred voice that he was wasting his time. He said she exclaimed, "This is f---- ridiculous, don't you have rapists to take off the street?"

After she failed several roadside sobriety tests and the deputy transferred custody of the handcuffed councilwoman to the state trooper, the deputy's report said she complained, "This is f---- ridiculous, I don't need handcuffs."

The trooper's report said Hague questioned his qualifications to administer blood-alcohol tests, on which she had readings of 0.135 and 0.141, well above 0.08, the statutory definition of intoxication. He wrote, "Several times (Hague) stated I should be out looking for real criminals, and sarcastically stated that my mother must be proud of me."

Hague, a Republican running for re-election, was in Arizona on Monday on a vacation hike through the Grand Canyon, a staff aide said. Her attorney, Doug Cowan, while declining to go into specifics, implied that Hague disputes the arresting officers' version of events.

"There are two sides to the story, and we will be telling ours at the appropriate time," he said. Hague has pleaded not guilty.

Brett Bader, Hague's political consultant, said any suggestion of a pattern of behavior in her current and previous problems "is nothing more than an effort by her political opponents to take advantage of an unfortunate situation, which she regrets, for their own political gain."

None of Hague's "political opponents," however, made such a suggestion to the Seattle P-I.

"The fact is, Jane is tough, and she gets results," Bader said. "I would suggest that these attributes in a male would be praised while female officeholders are still subjected to a double standard."

At the time of the 2001 bus collision, Hague claimed that the bus hit her car when she made a right turn. The Metro driver, however, said the councilwoman's sport utility vehicle pulled out and drove into the side of his bus. Several witnesses, including an off-duty police officer, agreed with his account.

Hague later denied the driver's assertion that she had tried to pull rank by mentioning her office and said, "Anyone who knows me knows I am not like that."

The 1999 ethics violation stemmed from Hague's raising of $29,555 -- mostly corporate and lobbyist donations -- to finance her successful campaign for second vice president of the National Association of Counties.

Duncan Fowler, then the ombudsman, said Hague violated the ethics code, which bars a county official from accepting gifts from parties having business before the county. He didn't fine her, because he believed the violation was unintentional.

Hague said council attorney Jim Brewer advised her on the matter beforehand. But Brewer said the issue of fundraising never came up in their conversation and he didn't know she intended to seek money from private parties. Several council members said Brewer always emphasized that they must never accept gifts from anyone doing business with the county.

The fact that Hague's latest embarrassment didn't become public for 2 1/2 months has raised Democrats' suspicions that it somehow was kept quiet until after the candidate filing period the week after Hague's arrest.

Her Eastside 6th District now leans Democratic, but no credible Democrat filed against her because she has been popular there and has $240,000 in her campaign fund. Her only opponent is Richard Pope, a perennial candidate who is running as a Democrat but has run other times as a Republican. Embarrassed Democratic leaders aren't supporting him.

State Democratic Chairman Dwight Pelz said he had "strong Democrats who were thinking of running against Jane Hague, and it was difficult for them to make that decision (not to run). But certainly if the public had known about this DUI in a more timely fashion, Richard Pope would not be our candidate right now."

Interim county prosecutor Dan Satterberg, a Republican running for election, said the deputy prosecutor who handled the case in King County District Court in Redmond was new to the office and to the Seattle area, and the name "Jane Hague Springman" didn't ring a bell.

Satterberg said nobody else in the prosecutor's office, including himself, was aware of the arrest until news media started making inquiries Aug. 21. The arrest report didn't state Hague's occupation.

Asked what he would have done if he had known Hague had been arrested, Satterberg said, "An elected official? That's an easy one. We would notify the press because that's a different category of citizen. That's someone who has been entrusted by the people with a certain amount of power."

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Ryan will remain free during second appeal
By Michael Higgins | Tribune staff reporter
August 21, 2007

Former Gov. George Ryan will remain free while he pursues a second appeal of his sweeping fraud and corruption convictions, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled late this afternoon.

In a crushing legal blow to the former governor earlier today, a three-judge panel from the appeals court denied Ryan's initial appeal 2-1. The judges found that Ryan received a fair trial last year despite a series of juror controversies.

Though Ryan had been allowed to remain free pending that appeal, the court had warned that Ryan and co-defendant Lawrence Warner would have to report to prison within 72 hours if they lost it. Ryan faces a 6 1/2 -year prison sentence.

This afternoon, however, the court stayed that order, finding that Ryan could remain free while a second appeal plays out. Under this afternoon's ruling, Ryan will remain free until the full 7th Circuit—a group of 11 judges—refuses to hear his case or until the full court hears his case and makes a ruling.

A decision on whether the full court would hear Ryan's case could take about six to eight weeks, and a ruling on the case could take until December or January, according to Joel Bertocchi, an attorney who specializes in appellate law...

[snip...]
In its decision this morning, the three-judge panel found that U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer acted within her authority when she replaced the jurors after the Tribune revealed they had failed to disclose information about their criminal backgrounds.

"We conclude that the district court handled most problems that arose in an acceptable manner, and that whatever error remained was harmless," Judge Diane Wood wrote for the panel. "We therefore affirm the convictions."

Ryan was convicted in April 2006 on charges that as secretary of state and governor, he doled out sweetheart deals to co-defendant Warner and other friends and used state resources and employees for political gain.

Warner's conviction also was affirmed today. He was sentenced to almost 3 1/2 years in prison.

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Radio personality arrested for Internet luring

FORT COLLINS – A Denver radio personality from KRCN radio 1060 AM was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of using the Internet to lure a child into a sexual relationship.

Fort Collins Police say 53-year-old Scott Eller Cortelyou, host of KRCN’s Business for Breakfast show, was arrested at the radio station in Lakewood around 9 a.m.

Cortelyou had previously worked as a news anchor and business editor for KOA and KHOW AM radio stations in Denver. His radio show, Business for Breakfast has been on the air with Cortelyou for 10 years – two and a half on the Radio Colorado Network and seven years prior to that on KOA Clear Channel.

Cortelyou also maintains the Business for Breakfast Web site.

Ron Nickel, Cortelyou’s boss at Radio Colorado Network says Cortelyou has been a perfect employee for the past two and a half years. Nickel says the radio host was arrested at the studio following his show Tuesday morning.

Police say the investigation into Cortelyou began in August 2006 and is ongoing.

Fort Collins Police transported him to Larimer County Sheriff’s Office where he was booked on Internet luring of a child and Internet sexual exploitation of a child.

Police say they have been working with the Jefferson County District Attorney’s office for the past six months on the investigation.

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Four More Top GOP Outings Could Be in the Offing
by Jon Ponder | Sep. 4, 2007

In the wake of closeted Sen. Larry Craig’s self-outing in an airport men’s room this summer, Mike Rogers, the Washington-based publisher of blogActive who outed Craig, is threatening to reveal the secret sexual identities of two leading GOP senators, while two allegedly gay Republican congressmen are making headlines and drawing unwelcome attention to themselves, the timing of which could not be worse.

The senators are Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader, from Kentucky. More about them below but first let’s look at two allegedly closeted members of the House, representatives Patrick McHenry and David Drier, who have been in the news lately.

Rep. Patrick McHenry’s Connection to Gay Murderer Confirmed

Rep. McHenry was one of the chief spinmeisters sent out by the House GOP leadership to do damage control after the outing of Rep. Mark Foley last year. McHenry was an interesting choice to spin away the leadership’s culpability in enabling Foley’s misbehavior because, like Foley, there have been persistent rumors about McHenry’s sexuality in the capitol and in North Carolina for years.

The rumors came to a boil in May when one of McHenry’s aides — who also shared digs with him — Michael Aaron Lay, 26, was indicted for voter fraud in North Carolina:

The indictment charges that [Lay] illegally cast his ballot in two 2004 Congressional primary run-offs in which McHenry was a candidate. The charges indicate that Lay voted in a district where it was not legal for him to vote.

At the time Lay was listed as a resident in a home owned by 32-year-old McHenry but campaign records indicate Lay’s paychecks were sent to an address in Tennessee. McHenry won the primary by only 86 votes. According to Gaston County, North Carolina District Attorney Locke Bell, Lay was indicted on Monday, May 7 by a local grand jury.

Now McHenry has been connected to the triple murder-suicide in Orlando last month in which the closeted gay former executive director of the Georgia GOP, Ralph Gonzalez, and his straight roommate, David Abrami, were shot by Jason Robert Drake, a gay ex-Marine.

Originally portrayed as a lover’s quarrel among the three men, recently developed particulars of the case have revealed Drake’s entanglement with a murder related to gay prostitution services in the Washington, D.C., area. It has also come to light that Rep. McHenry was an associate of Gonzalez and Gonzalez’ killer:

When I spoke to McHenry’s office about this they at first insisted they never heard of Drake then, confronted with specifics, admitted they know him. They refused to put Congressman McHenry on the phone. There is every indication that McHenry may have been one of the Republican elected officials who was using the services of the gay prostitution agency connected to Drake.

The North Carolina Conservative has more:

Another, more sinister motive [for the triple suicide-murders] has been put forth by several sources, including CrimeBlog.us. Reporters there say that Drake was associated with the owner of a gay escort service in the Virginia Beach area. The owners of that escort service are facing charges that they murdered the owner of a rival company catering to the gay community…

Sources tell The North Carolina Conservative that Drake volunteered on several Republican campaigns in western North Carolina, and was an associate of Congressman Patrick McHenry. Gonzalez is also believed to have been associated with McHenry in the past. Since being elected, McHenry has attempted to insure that all elected officials in his district are his supporters and cronies. This has caused a very nasty political war of attrition in the 10th District. Sources say that Drake worked on these campaigns as a surrogate of McHenry.

Aside from the gay angle, the murders of Gonzalez and Abrami have been tied to a suspicious suicide through Gonzalez’ connection to allegedly corrupt Rep. Tom Feeney, R-Florida. Gonzalez also worked with Christian politico Ralph Reed and Sheri McInvale, an indicted state pol in Florida.
Rep. David Dreier Gets Comfy Addressing Colombian Congress


Rep. Dreier, a senior House Republican was outed in 2004, but the public didn’t seem to notice. If he wants to keep it that way, he should avoid making a spectacle of himself, as he did last week in front of the Colombian legislature:

A U.S. congressman said on Thursday he meant no offense when he hoisted himself onto the lectern of Colombia’s lower house to address his Andean colleagues, some of whom were offended or simply amused by the faux pas.

Colombian newspapers carried pictures of Rep. David Dreier, a California Republican, sitting on top of the wooden podium and talking with local legislators on Tuesday while on an official visit…

“I have the highest regard for the Congress of Colombia,” Dreier told reporters in Bogota. “I meant absolutely no offense … I simply wanted to demonstrate my warm feeling and affection.”

Dreier was outed by Doug Ireland, who writes the column Direland in the LA Weekly, who was motivated by Dreier’s perfect record of voting against gay civil rights:

The “outing” was a result of Dreier coming under increasing scrutiny from gay rights groups because of what they characterize as an anti-gay voting record in Congress, which includes support of the Defense of Marriage Act, as well as votes against gay adoption, and against inclusion of homosexuality as a protected status in hate crime and employment discrimination legislation.

When Tom DeLay was removed as House Majority Leader in 2005, Dreier was Speaker Dennis Hastert’s pick to replace DeLay on an interim basis, but other House leaders quashed the move because Dreier is gay. The fact that Dreier is apparently happy to stay in a party that penalizes him because of who he is speaks volumes.
Sen. Lindsey Graham Is on Mike Roger’s List

If it were to come out that McCain’s Mini-Me, Sen. Graham, is gay, his chances of being reelected in South Carolina next year would drop to zero:

Lindsey Graham (R-SC), an unmarried/never married 52 year old with a funny, forced way of walking, has been far more fastidious with his homosexuality [than former Rep. Mark Foley was]. Again, “everyone” knows– except the voters in conservative South Carolina. Not that it doesn’t come up from time to time; people talk. In fact, the head of the Democratic Party in South Carolina said something when the effeminate Lindsey decided to run for Thurmond’s senate seat. “He’s a little too light in the loafers” to succeed Strom Thurmond. Graham got into a really queenie tizzy fit and loudly threatened to sue– although he didn’t. (They never do.)

Other famous never-married GOP figures in their 50s include White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and Sec. of State Condoleeza Rice.
Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Won’t Explain Why He was Expelled from the Army after 10 Days

Minority Leader McConnell has been the object of gay rumors for while, too. In fact, Wonkette has referred to him as “My Old Kentucky Homo.”

Mike Rogers says:

Are the long standing rumors of McConnell’s extra-curricular shower activities in the military true? I believe so, and not just because his office refused to provide me with a copy of his discharge records. I wonder what they are trying to hide.

And Rogers told Counterpunch:

“Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s quick expulsion from the Army –for fondling a private’s privates — is finally being discussed in Kentucky.” He notes that McConnell, discharged after just 10 days in the Army in 1967, “has consistently prevented anyone from seeing his military discharge papers” but a Freedom of Information suit may bring them to light. (After the revelation of Craig’s arrest and confession, McConnell cosigned a statement with other top Republican legislators stating, “This is a serious matter” and indicating he is examining “other aspects of the case to determine if additional action is required.”)

As we noted last week, Republicans painted themselves into this gay corner when they formed their star-crossed coalition with Christian nationalists in 1979. It was never a good fit. Country club Republicans don’t generally care about discussing family values, and going to church is not the central focus of their lives — not hardly.

The GOP could find itself right back where it was after Watergate. Bush and his toadying to the Christian right has driven away the right-leaning independents. Without the support of the poor, dumbass so-called Christians, there aren’t enough country clubbers and anti-taxers out there to win a national election. Status quo circa 1977.

If the secret lives of any of these men are revealed as the election cycle ratchets up, the Christianists could well seek solace in a third party next year, leaving the GOP’s Washington elite literally without a base to stand on.

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Republican event organizer quits, citing `lies'
Calling claims against him irrelevant and 'old news,' an organizer for a presidential event in which Rudy Giuliani will be the keynote speaker said he would step down.
Sep. 01, 2007
BY MARC CAPUTO AND GARY FINEOUT
mcaputo@MiamiHerald.com

TALLAHASSEE --
A St. Petersburg organizer for a Rudy Giuliani presidential event plans to step down amid revelations of his arrests for allegedly extorting an FSU student in a sex case and his conviction for dealing in stolen state computers.

Barry S. Edwards, 45, told The Miami Herald that the charges against him were ''old news'' -- and were 'unfounded' in the student sex case -- but he nevertheless thought it would be best to withdraw from the Pinellas County Republican Party fundraiser because ``I'm not relevant and I shouldn't be the story.''

Edwards said he was not being paid for organizing the Sept. 7 Reagan Day dinner, and had no real connection to the campaign of Giuliani, who is to be the keynote speaker at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club in St. Petersburg.

Edwards is listed as the events chairman on the invitation for the $100 per ticket dinner.

The two criminal incidents involving Edwards were unrelated, and occurred within months of each other in 1998.

According to a Florida State University arrest affidavit: Edwards was first charged after a 19-year-old FSU political science intern claimed Edwards, then an adjunct professor, plied him with beers, trolled briefly for prostitutes, watched ''heterosexual'' pornography and then exhorted him to masturbate in a game.

The intern said Edwards threatened him with bad grades if he didn't ''get into it.'' He declined to press charges. Edwards said the claims were ''lies'' but he didn't ''want to revisit it.'' Edwards was fired from FSU.

Shortly after his extortion arrest, state Capitol police then arrested Edwards on charges of theft, burglary and dealing with stolen property after the cops said he stole at least $10,000 worth of computer equipment from offices of the Florida Legislature.

In November 1998, the state dropped the extortion charges, saying the victim had requested that charges be dropped. In 1999, Edwards pleaded no contest to the dealing in stolen property and theft charges and was sentenced to 100 days in jail and three years probation. A judge withheld adjudication, meaning Edwards is not a convicted felon.

Edwards said he stole nothing, but that he used bad judgment. He declined to discuss details, but likened the situation to buying a Rolex watch for $200. ''Either it's fake or its stolen,'' he said.

Pinellas County Republican Party chairman Tony DiMatteo said he knew of Edwards computer arrest but didn't know about the extortion charge. DiMatteo noted that Edwards, a former Democrat who once worked at the party and fundraised for candidates, is not a party officer.

The fact that the charges are coming up again, Edwards said, is just another example of the viciousness and coarseness of politics today.

''Whether you did something or were accused of something you didn't do almost doesn't matter. Perception is reality,'' he said. ``This chills people from becoming involved.''

Said Elliott Bundy, a spokesman for Giuliani, ``this gentleman was organizing the event on behalf of the Pinellas County party and not us. We have no further comment.''

Herald researcher Tina Cummings contributed to this story.

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Former GOP power Currin going to prison

Titan Barksdale, Staff Writer
As a federal prosecutor, Sam Currin spent six years prosecuting drug dealers, pornographers and other criminals. Now, he will spend nearly the same amount of time in prison himself.

Currin, 58, whose career included stints as a judge and as chairman of the state's Republican Party, became the latest North Carolina leader to be sent to jail when he was sentenced this week in federal court to 70 months behind bars on money laundering and obstruction charges.

His attorney, Mark Calloway, would not comment about the sentence.

Currin rose through the political and legal ranks as a protege of then-Sen. Jesse Helms. He worked as an aide to Helms, a conservative Republican who eventually nominated him for the U.S. attorney position and later for a federal judgeship, which Democrats vehemently opposed. Critics of the nomination called Currin a religious and political zealot and accused him of lying in a 1982 personnel hearing over his firing of a paralegal.

Currin, 58, was never confirmed. But he served as a Superior Court judge before becoming the Republican Party chairman.

Though Currin hasn't had a leading role in politics since he was ousted as Republican Party chairman in 1999, his actions could contribute to a sense of mistrust of government. Voters have seen Meg Scott Phipps, a Democrat who was the state's agriculture secretary, former Democratic House Speaker Jim Black and state Rep. Michael Decker sentenced for illegal activities.

"It adds to this sort of feeling of scandal and corruption in politics at the moment," said Andy Taylor, the political science chairman at N.C. State University. "Perhaps its another thing that Democrats can say when they point to Republican corruption."

Advocates for ethics in politics say this shouldn't be used as political fodder.

"Currin was a player in politics in a big way, but, unlike some others, his wrongdoing wasn't connected to his political works," said Bob Phillips, the state's executive director of Common Cause, an ethics reform group.

"I think it reinforces attitudes that are pretty hardened about people who have been in public service, and that feeling is that they are prone to mistakes," Phillips said. "It's unfortunate because that's a perception and not reality."

Currin, who has about 90 days before he has to report to prison, has agreed to testify against his former business associates.

The crimes he was sentenced for Tuesday stem from Currin's work as a lawyer in private practice.

Currin pleaded guilty in November to federal charges that he conspired to launder about $1.3 million that a computer spam artist made by inundating e-mail inboxes with stock schemes.

Prosecutors say Currin's role netted him more than $240,000. He funneled money from the scheme into his law firm's trust account, and later lied about it to a grand jury.

Carter Wrenn, a veteran Republican consultant and former Helms strategist, said Wednesday that he remembers Currin as a competent, nice person.

"I knew Sam pretty well back in the Helms years, and I'm sorry for him and his family," Wrenn said. "I guess he made some pretty unfortunate and bad mistakes."

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Flynt unveiling more claims involving New Orleans senator
The Associated Press
09/10/2007

NEW ORLEANS—A former New Orleans prostitute who says she had an affair with Sen. David Vitter has passed a lie-detector test and will provide details of the four-month relationship at a press conference Tuesday, according to Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt.

Wendy Cortez, whose real name is Wendy Ellis, says she had a sexual relationship with Vitter, R-La., in 1999, when he was a state legislator.

Copies of the results of Cortez's polygraph test, which she took at Flynt's request, will be provided to reporters at the news conference at Flynt's office in Beverly Hills, Calif., Hustler said in a news release Monday.

Vitter spokesman Joel Digrado wouldn't comment on the Flynt news conference. In an e-mail, Digrado said, "Sen. Vitter and his wife have addressed all of this very directly. The senator is focused on important Louisiana priorities like the water resources bill and the Iraq debate."

Vitter, 46, apologized in July for committing a "very serious sin" and acknowledged his Washington phone number was among those called several years ago by an escort service run by Deborah Jeane Palfrey. The admission came after Flynt's Hustler magazine told the senator that his telephone number was linked to Palfrey's escort service.

Federal prosecutors accuse Palfrey of running a prostitution ring, but she claims her escort service was a legitimate business. Vitter was not charged with a crime.

Flynt has offered to pay $1 million to anyone
who can show he or she had a sexual encounter with a member of Congress or a high-ranking government official. It is unclear whether he has offered Cortez any money.

Vitter, a first-term senator elected in 2004, has denied having relationships with New Orleans prostitutes. In a call-in radio show during the Senate campaign, he dismissed as "absolutely and completely untrue" that he had a relationship with a Wendy Cortez.

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Utah fund-raiser for Romney, Robert Lichfield, steps down

Robert Lichfield involved in schools that are subjects of lawsuits

September 7, 2007
By Lisa Riley Roche
Deseret Morning News

A Utah fund-raiser for Mitt Romney who helped the GOP presidential candidate collect $300,000 in donations at an event in St. George earlier this year is no longer part of the campaign. Robert Lichfield, who is affiliated with several schools for troubled teens that are the subjects of lawsuits alleging child abuse, left his position as a Utah finance committee co-chairman in July, a spokeswoman for the Romney campaign said Thursday.

The Web site "Radar" reported Thursday that Romney asked Lichfield to step down. But Romney spokeswoman Gail Gitcho said Lichfield "resigned on his own accord" from the campaign shortly after stories surfaced in late June about his legal problems.
Lichfield's name did not appear on a list of national finance chairmen and co-chairmen released by the campaign on July 31 that included seven Utahns. Campaign officials said then that Lichfield was no longer involved in fund raising.
The Web site report comes after two other people involved in the Romney campaign made headlines.

Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, stepped down last month as Romney's Senate liaison, after the public learned of his guilty plea to a charge of disorderly conduct in an airport bathroom in connection with a sex sting.

Earlier in August, a Romney national finance co-chairman, Alan Fabian, resigned his position with the campaign after he was indicted by a federal grand jury on 23 counts of bankruptcy fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, obstruction of justice and perjury.

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Randall Hinton convicted of two counts of child abuse
September 1, 2007
Vic Vela
The Daily Record

Randall Hinton

After a six-hour deliberation, a six-person jury found Randall Hinton — the project manager and co-founder of the Royal Gorge Academy boarding school — guilty of one count each of third-degree assault and false imprisonment.

Royal Gorge Academy

However, jurors felt there was enough reasonable doubt to find the defendant not guilty of four other counts of third-degree assault and one count of false imprisonment as the week-long trial ended late Friday evening.

In a trial that featured references to everything from red ants, feminine hygiene products, swastikas, “The Da Vinci Code,” and the Columbine Massacre, it was no surprise that a Jack Nicholson movie character was too referenced.

In his closing argument to jurors, Fremont County Deputy District Attorney Thom LeDoux attempted to paint Randall Hinton in the same light as Col. Nathan Jessep — the marine, played by Nicholson, who stood trial in the 1992 film, “A Few Good Men,” who was court-martialed in the movie. Like Jessep, LeDoux said Hinton tried to excuse his actions at the school as a man who was “just doing his job.”

“But, when you do something that causes harm to another human being, we have an obligation to take a good, long, hard look at what you do,” LeDoux said.

Jurors did just that. Deliberations began at 3:30 Friday afternoon, with the verdicts finally being presented to Fremont County Court Judge Norman Cooling at 9:35 that evening.

The jury ultimately found Hinton guilty for the actions he took involving 15-year-old Riverside, Calif., boy who testified Tuesday that the defendant slammed his face into a stairwell wall and put him in a headlock as he carried him to his upstairs dorm room.

The guilty verdict came in spite of the defense’s attempt to paint the boy as a trouble maker. Defense testimony was provided that called into question the boy’s character, claiming he would draft racist writings and draw swastikas. He also was described as a “danger” to other students after it was learned the boy had stolen a knife from the school’s kitchen.

However, the boy said he only stole the knife for the purpose of using it to unscrew a window in his room in an attempt to run away from the school.

The jury also felt Hinton was criminally responsible for falsely imprisoning a 17-year-old Long Beach, Calif., boy who testified the same day that Hinton kept him face down on the floor for so long, he had to vomit. The boy also said the defendant would not allow him leave the room in order to vomit, even after complaining of stomach pains.

However, jurors did not feel the testimony of three other teenagers was compelling enough to sustain the charges against him relating to them.

Jurors dismissed one count each of third-degree assault and false imprisonment for Hinton’s actions against a 17-year-old Highlands Ranch girl who claimed the “arm lock” the defendant put her in on the night of Dec. 28, 2006, “was one of the most painful things” she went through.

The girl alleged Hinton would not let her change her pants after she had her period.

The girl admitted to hitting herself in the head with a stapler and attempting to run away from the school the second day she was there. The girl also admitted to contemplating drinking shampoo, “anything to get out of there.” Meanwhile, the girl was offered tampons, but said she rejected them, claiming they were uncomfortable.

Hinton’s attorney, Michael Gillick, described the girl as a “drama queen,” and someone who was used to getting her way at home.

“I didn’t know Gucci made tampons,” Gillick quipped to jurors in an effort to paint the girl as difficult.

Hinton was found not guilty of one count of third degree assault involving a 16-year-old Bloomington, Minn., boy who testified he and three other boys were forced to lay on top of a “red ant pile” after the defendant caught the boys near the hogback hills area following an attempted runaway attempt.

Another count of third-degree assault involving the Minnesota boy — who also alleged Hinton had forced him to stay still while ants bit him — also was dismissed by jurors.

Jurors never heard further testimony regarding potential “anti-Mormon resentment,” from a key prosecution witness and a Cañon City Police Department detective.

Gillick questioned the credibility of Patty Pacheco — a former Academy executive secretary and Hinton friend — who said one of the reasons it was difficult to come forward was because of potential repercussions and “the people in Utah.” Gillick took that as being a derogatory statement aimed at Hinton, who is Mormon.

Gillick also questioned why CCPD Det. Sgt. Jeff Worley — who led the police investigation into Hinton — never took the stand. Gillick said he and Pacheco were part of a group who protested the opening of the 2006 film, “The Da Vinci Code.”

In an effort to quell LeDoux’s stance that Hinton — who stands 6’2,” 270 pounds — was much larger than the alleged victims and didn’t need to use physical restraint against them, Gillick reminded jurors that Columbine High School Massacre shooter Dylan Klebold was “not a big guy either.”

However, Cooling would not allow the jury to consider either “anti-Mormon resentment” or parallels to Columbine.

During his closing argument, LeDoux attempted to remind the jury that “these kids are not on trial,” in an effort to dissuade them from accepting the defense’s efforts to paint the students as “troubled kids.”

“There’s no conspiracy here,” argued LeDoux. “These kids didn’t get together and say, ‘We’re gonna get this guy.’ They didn’t even know each other.”

Now, Hinton’s fate rests with Cooling. Third-degree assault is a Class I misdemeanor and carries with it a maximum penalty of two years in county jail.

The false imprisonment charge is a Class II misdemeanor; Hinton faces up to one year in jail for this charge.

Cooling will determine in a future sentencing hearing whether Hinton will receive jail time, probation or a combination of both.

Vic Vela can be reached at vvela@ccdailyrecord.com.

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The undercover detective expressed concern about physical injury to the 5-year-old girl as a result of the sexual activity. Detectives said Atchison responded, " I am always gentle and loving; not to worry, no damage ever, no rough stuff ever. I only like it soft and nice."

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Looks like I'm not the only one who says this guy smells like a republican...