Judge refuses to dismiss bid-rigging case at On the Beat in the Bluegrass

Judge refuses to dismiss bid-rigging case

Published

on December 24, 2008

. Tags: bid-rig, Bill Nighbert, Brian Billings, Leonard Lawson.

The Associated Press

FRANKFORT — A federal judge has denied a request to dismiss bid-rigging charges against a former government official, a construction contractor and one of his aides.

U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves ruled Wednesday that the public release of an FBI affidavit doesn’t warrant dismissal of the charges.

Attorneys for former Kentucky Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert, road builder Leonard Lawson, and Lawson aide Brian Billings had asked that the case be dismissed. They claimed that the affidavit left in a public file where it could be obtained by reporters prejudiced the grand jury that issued the indictment in September.

The affidavit provided details of the bid-rigging investigation four weeks before the grand jury brought charges of conspiracy, misapplication of property and obstruction of justice.

1 Response to “Judge refuses to dismiss bid-rigging case”

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1 NRA rhetoric
December 24, 2008 at 1:00 pm

OUCH…sounds like big coal might have something for you for Christmas…for being a very very, naughty, naughty,,,bad boy…

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CONTRIBUTORS

Ashlee Clark is the Richmond bureau reporter for the Herald-Leader. She has covered general assignments in Madison, Clark, Estill, Powell and Montgomery counties since she joined the newspaper in September 2007. Ashlee, a Louisville native, is a graduate of Western Kentucky University, where she received degrees in journalism and sociology.

Shawntaye Hopkins is the Herald-Leader’s police reporter, covering local law enforcement, fire and EMS and breaking news. She joined the staff in September 2006 as the newspaper’s night police reporter. Shawntaye, a Louisville native, graduated from Western Kentucky University where she studied journalism and criminology. Shawntaye resides in Lexington.

Delano Massey is the Herald-Leader’s Regional Editor. He works closely with the paper’s bureau reporters and police and courts reporters to plan coverage, pursue breaking news and seek out enterprise stories. A Northeast Ohio native, Delano started his journalism career as a night cops reporter at the Belleville News-Democrat. In 2003, he made the trek to Lexington to take the reins as the newspaper’s daytime cops reporter. Delano, a graduate of the University of Akron, has won numerous awards for breaking news, spot news and investigative journalism.

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