DETROIT -
Judge Edmunds apologizes to the jury for the late start. Says they've been meeting on issues like jury instructions, witnesses, and end of trial paperwork. Judge Edmunds says there will be no witnesses today. Mr. Leemon has a medical issue, so does another witness that was supposed to be here today. Other witnesses had some scheduling conflicts. Judge Edmunds tells the jury she's sorry she brought them in when there was nothing for them to do but the court didn't know until the phone calls started coming in this morning.
The jury is excused. Judge Edmunds says she's going to meet with attorneys to iron out discrepancies in jury instructions, stipulations that need to be read to the jury, and that she expects to finish up tomorrow.
She asks if the attorneys can stick around to resolve some of the witness issues.
And the picture from the court room just got turned off. We're done for the day.
9:42
"All Rise." Court is session.:9:36
The attorneys are starting to filter out of the judge's chambers.
9:23
The talk in the court halls this morning has been all about the testimony of Mr. Lewis S. McVay, born in Oklahoma, grew up in Detroit, hard working, earnest, and his 2 and a half minute pause as he tried to compose himself, collect himself, to find an honest answer in his heart.
The defense brought him in to tell us how he was given an opportunity to finish out his career with Bobby Ferguson, so he could collect his Union pension and retire. To tell us how Bobby put him to work after his old company went under.
Mark Chutkow showed Mr. McVay a text message, and it looked like the strong, upstanding man was socked in the jaw. The look on his faced changed to one of shock.
He rocked back in his chair as if from a blow. He couldn't speak. After answering every question forthrightly and honestly without a moment of hesitation, he lost his voice.
Ferguson's attorney Gerald Evelyn asked the soft spoken man if he had great respect for his former employers. He told us yes he did, he considered his old boss his friend, that it saddened him to leave his old company. He sounded grateful that Bobby gave him a job.
Chutkow asked him what he thought about that text that showed Ferguson and Kwame Kilpatrick laughing about this old company going out of business, deriding his old boss and calling him names. What's your opinion of this Chutkow asked. And Mr. McVay struggled to answer. Struggled within himself, and finally, after a minute rung his hands together and looked down. The Judge sat silent, Chutkow waited, the Jury didn't make a sound. Finally Mr. McVay said, "I wouldn't like it, no I wouldn't."
A simple comment from a quiet hard working man. It might just be the phrase that sums up the trial.
The picture is up in the overflow room, the attorneys are in chambers, and we're ready to start another day of testimony.
8:39
Good morning from the Theodore J. Levin Federal Court House in downtown Detroit. Accountant Gary Leemon is expected back today to finish his testimony for the defense. He's the guy, when asked if paying for Yoga lessons out of the Kilpatrick Civic Fund was an acceptable expense, said, "not even close."
Ken Martinek is Senior Producer-Investigations for Fox 2 News. You can contact him at ken.martinek@foxtv.com
