Senator Fumo corruption trial begins

By Eric Donovan
Senior Staff Writer
November 13, 2008

Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Fumo’s trial on government corruption is heating up in its third week, as prosecutors continue to expose Fumo’s money-handling, accusing him of using taxpayers’ money to complete his daily tasks, which could range from his laundry to hiring a private investigator to watch over Fumo’s personal and political enemies.

The 65-year-old Democrat opted not to run for reelection of his Senate seat in the primary this past March, due in part to a heart attack he had suffered. A month earlier, he had been charged on 139 counts including fraud, conspiracy, obstruction of justice and filing a false tax return, among others.

This week, many of these charges came into play as prosecutors brought several of Fumo’s aides to the stand to testify against him, including estranged son-in-law Christian Marrone, who claimed he was brought onto Fumo’s staff without any idea of the job he was to undertake. The job ended up with him overseeing the $1.7 million renovation of Fumo’s Spring Garden home. While the money did not come from government funds, prosecutors argue that such use of government employees, such as Marrone, is a misuse of taxpayers’ money and is illegal.

Other witnesses who testified claimed Fumo had used government workers for an array of personal jobs, including housekeeping and handyman tasks at his home.

Fumo’s defense attorney Dennis J. Cogan argues in an Inquirer article that “if it makes him more efficient and frees him up” to his senatorial priorities, then the misuse of such government workers should be allowed.

“It’s an abuse of power,” responded economics and history major Kevin Prendergast to that defense. “And if he needed all of those people to help him do his job, then he shouldn’t have been in office.”

Prosecutors Assistant U.S. Attorney John J. Pease and Robert A. Zauzmer, plan on using “heavy-hitting” witnesses early on in the hopes of establishing Fumo as a man who took advantage of the power that he had. This included witnesses like Marrone and Fumo’s Senate-contracted private eye, Frank Wallace, who was paid over $200,000 in taxpayers’ money for his five years of investigative services to the senator.

Patrick Harrison, one of Fumo’s former carpenters, and private investigator Stephen Coolahan took the stand Nov. 6 to testify on Fumo’s questionable hirings.

Coolahan, an employee of Wallace’s, testified that he was told to get surveillance over the course of two hours one night outside of political rival John Dougherty’s bar, apparently while a meeting was being held inside.

Prosecutors also had John Contino, executive director of the State Ethics Commission, on hand to testify that the State Ethics Act does not allow for government officials to use their offices for any personal or political gain.

This would also include campaign activity, that according to witnesses, was always occurring within his senatorial offices. Allegedly, staffers did various jobs such as envelope stuffing, fundraising and basically anything else Fumo asked, all in the name of securing Fumo’s success in his campaigns for reelection.

Throughout the next few weeks, prosecutors plan to establish Fumo as a corrupt and overindulgent man with several more of his former employees and staff members as witnesses. If convicted, Fumo could face anywhere from two to 10 years in prison.

donovane1@student.lasalle.edu