Why Scruggs matters to you

Columns

Discussion

July 12, 2008

By Craig Ziemba / guest columnist The Meridian Star Sat Jul 12, 2008, 11:31 PM CDT

Trial lawyers caught bribing judges and public officials?! Say it ain’t so. Unfortunately, other than a headline or two, the story of Dickie Scruggs’ trial and prosecution hasn’t incited near the outrage it should.

Last month Scruggs was given the maximum 5 year $250,000 sentence in a plea bargain for his attempt to bribe Circuit Judge Henry Lackey for a favorable ruling in a hurricane Katrina case. But ongoing investigations are unearthing much, much more as the money trail between Scruggs and a host of judges, politicians, and public officials come to light.

Among them: Scruggs donated $300,000 and his buddy Joey Langston kicked in an additional $100,000 to the Democratic Attorney Generals Association. Shortly after that the DAGA donated $400,000 to Mississippi’s Attorney General Jim Hood. (Scruggs also gave $44,000 directly to Hood’s campaign).

According to an FBI report, Scruggs then offered two other attorneys named in the judicial bribery scheme half a million dollars to ask Hood not to pursue criminal charges against State Farm Insurance after Katrina so that Scruggs’ newly-formed Katrina Group could cash in on the action first. Hood, of course helped Dickie Scruggs out, eventually going so far as to take possession of documents stolen from State Farm by two sisters working on Katrina cases so that Scruggs wouldn’t have to turn them over to federal prosecutors.

Dozens of other cases involving Scruggs, Paul Minor, and others show a pattern of Mississippi trial lawyers bribing judges and public officials with loan guarantees, loan repayments, laundered campaign contributions and rent-free living arrangements.

Dickie Scruggs loaned $75,000 to Ronnie Musgrove and $500,000 to Amy Tuck when both were candidates for Lieutenant Governor. I wonder how those payment plans are coming along … Do they have a coupon book and make monthly payments? What’s the interest rate? And how does someone get a half million dollar loan on a Lieutenant Governor salary of $60,000?

Poking fun of politically connected fat cats is easy, but what do Dickie Scruggs’ crimes have to do with you? Plenty. Corruption of public officials does far more damage to the average citizen than any robber wielding a gun.

Trial lawyers who pervert our justice systems in order to win huge settlements cost everyone who owns a home or business through higher premiums and increased liability.

Scruggs and his ilk claim to represent the little guy against big insurance companies. But the system they perpetuate ensures that the little guy can’t get a fair shake unless he pays a dishonest broker to mediate on their behalf.

Hundreds of Mississippians including a former governor wrote letters to the judge in Scruggs’ case pleading for leniency. “Any time he spends being incarcerated is an absolute waste of a great deal of talent and ability…Furthermore, it would appear to be a waste of taxpayer’s money,” wrote Ole Miss Chancellor Robert Khayat, “Punishment is relative to the individual.”

I couldn’t disagree more. Justice should be dispensed just as surely to the powerful and well-connected as anyone else. And I wish prosecutors in the ongoing investigations happy hunting following every dishonest dollar to every dishonest official no matter where the trail may lead.

Craig Ziemba is a military pilot who lives in Meridian. To have Craig speak at your event, contact him at craigziemba@aol.com.

Text Only

Columns

European travel tips
If there is a condom machine in the restaurant’s restroom, you have made a mistake in your choice of dining establishment.
That is one of my rules for dining in Europe. Unfortunately, if you are already in the restroom, it’s probably too late.

February 8, 2012
Military cuts and BRAC to challenge leaders
February 6, 2012
Let ms.gov know what's going on
The state's newly relaunched web portal, www.ms.gov, is a great idea. According to a news release this is the first major update for the site in more than a decade.

February 5, 2012
Today’s need — $3,893.76
Today’s need concerns eleven circumstances. The first need is a couple in their forties working all the hours they can. The husband’s paycheck has been running low because he has not been receiving the hours at work he was accustomed to. With $274.38 we can keep their utilities form being cut off.

February 4, 2012
Killer, the cat ...
February 3, 2012
Counsel fight remains a political cold war
The ongoing legislative battle over the so-called “outside counsel” or contingency fee law remains a political cold war between the state’s trial lawyers and the state’s business and medical interests – and it’s a story that has two sides.

February 1, 2012
Travel technology
After leaving the Trapani Salt Flats on the western coast of Sicily on a late November afternoon, I maneuvered our vehicle down yet another remote, unmarked dirt road and passed dozens of vacant houses. No one was on the streets. It had been 10 minutes since we had seen another car. Sunlight was at a minimum. We had been warned several times about remote areas of Sicily.

February 1, 2012
Restoration spurs renewal in East Miss.
Choctaw tribal chief Phyliss Anderson restored and reopened Phillip M’s at the Pearl River Resort last week. She also signaled her intent to renew the economic policies so successfully implemented by the restaurant’s namesake.
"Under the visionary leadership of our late Chief Phillip Martin, our tribe realized great progress and today I am proud to honor his legacy with the re-opening of Phillip M's," said Anderson, flanked by members of Martin's family.

January 30, 2012
Today’s need — $2,393.77
1 JOHN 3:17 - “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has not pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” Praise belongs to God as every need in 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 has been met. Thanks to everyone who has generously given over the years to change lives physically, financially, and spiritually. Each week I stand in awe of God as I witness God’s provision in our lives.

Today’s need concerns six circumstances. The first need is a lady in her fifties just released from the hospital. Her sister she was living with died a few months ago. She is trying as hard as she can to pay the mortgage to keep her sister’s house. She has been able to maintain all her expenses so far but does not have money for her prescriptions. These prescriptions are necessary to keep her physically well. With $300.00 we can provide her much needed medications.

January 29, 2012
Gratitude
As I sit down to write this first column in a wrap-up series of the six-month, 17-country, two-continent research tour through Europe, I am struck by an overwhelming feeling of gratitude.
I am grateful to the employees and managers of our restaurants who did an excellent job keeping the wheels in motion during my absence. I am grateful to our customers who helped make 2011 a record sales year for the company. I am grateful to longtime friends, new friends, and friends we have never even met for their prayers of support and well wishes. I am also grateful to the friends we met along the way.

January 25, 2012
More Columns Headlines

Columns

Search Results

Discussion

Why Scruggs matters to you

Site Map

Contact Us