U.S. Attorney Alice Martin's federal indictment facing Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford and two associates is getting national attention, but the transactions behind the case were raising eyebrows at the Alabama Ethics Commission before they even got to court.
Spotting the little details about public officials that could signal a big conflict of interest is Jim Sumner's job. As Director of the Alabama Ethics Commission, Sumner has seen the income, debt, and business connections of quite a few elected officials and lobbyists.
Both are required to file Statements of Economic Interest periodically. Last year they received 50,000 of the statements from public officials across the state.
"The statement requires not only a listing of your family members but your business holdings, business arrangements, business interests, property held that may be rented to public entities cities, counties, state etc ...your debt, any consulting arrangements you might have so forth all have to be reported on this form," said Jim Sumner.
Whether they flew business class or coach, who picked up the tab for dinner, the details of public business are his business.
"Anything that would have to do with trips, hospitality, so forth, in this instance trips to New York City for instance, would have to be reported to the ethics commission by the provider and uh that was not done in this case," said Sumner.
He's seen his fair share of corruption over the years, but says the Jefferson County Sewer Scandal, which has resulted in more than 20 guilty pleas or convictions of public officials and contractors, and also connects to the three Monday indictments, takes the cake. "I've never seen anything like this," said Sumner.
At the heart of the U.S. Attorney's bribery allegations are gifts total ling more than $230,000 to Langford in exchange for lucrative business contracts. Sumner says the state law about giving to public officials is "is even more strict than the federal standard, whether or not there were ulterior motives.
There is an exclusion in the State Ethics Code for non-family members giving public officials seasonal gifts, as long as there are no strings attached.
"In other words if somebody wants to give their favorite City Councilor a ham or a turkey at the Holidays then that's what's allowed, but it contemplates it being of items of relatively small economic value. In fact it says those words. Less than 100 dollars and then it says the aggregate value of gifts throughout the year from that single person that donor needs to be less than $250 for the entire year. Obviously the gifts in this situation were well in excess of what the law would allow," said Jim Sumner.
The prosecution claims Langford received more than $230,000 in presents and payments from lobbyist Al La Pierre and Banker William Blount in exchange for lucrative political favors.
"Anything of that magnitude would be viewed as a gift. In other words no one offers to pay off my loans at the bank or yours or anyone else's, that would be viewed as a gift. If it were more than a certain amount it would be violative of the law," said Sumner.
He said almost everything in the case is a violation of state ethics law as well.
"Not all of them they are all couched in federal law in other words, but almost everything in the case is a violation of the state ethics law as well. We have a bribery provision, we have a provisions that have to do with gifts, use of office for personal gain, failing to file their statement of economic interest properly, and there's another section that has to do with providing something to a public official or employee in exchange for their official action and I would say probably 75 percent of the 101 matters in these indictments could easily fall within the state ethics law," said Sumner.
Meanwhile attorneys for Mayor Langford maintain he did nothing wrong and say he has already passed a polygraph with flying colors.
All three defendants plead not guilty. The trial is set for February, but a U.S. Attorney's Office spokesperson says the number indictments will likely cause it to be pushed back.
