McDonnells plead not guilty
Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, pleaded not guilty to federal corruption charges Friday on their first day of court appearances in Richmond. The pair were indicted earlier this week in connection with a gift scandal that tarnished the reputation of the former governor, who was once a rising star of the Republican Party. Their trial is scheduled to begin on July 28, according to reports.
At an earlier hearing on Friday, Judge David Novak released the McDonnell family members and said they could not leave the country, the Associated Press reports. The couple surrendered their passports, the former governor’s lawyer reportedly said. Novak also criticized the legal teams on both sides of the case for the leaks. “The media game is over,” Novak said, according to the AP.
According to video posted by NBC 12, the pair held hands as they entered the courthouse and Bob McDonnell said “Good morning” to the people gathered outside.
The former Republican governor, who left office at the end of his term this month, said he did not break the law when his family allegedly accepted $165,000 in gifts and loans from a businessman whose nutritional supplement products the McDonnells helped promote. The former first lady’s lawyer also said she is innocent.
“I will use every available resource and advocate for as long as it takes to fight these false claims and the unfair overreach of the federal government,” Bob McDonnell said at a news conference Tuesday. Prosecutors say the McDonnells could face decades in prison and millions of dollars in fines, although the sentences will be lighter if convicted.
The investigation into the gifts and loans dragged on for several months. Federal prosecutors say the gifts included Maureen McDonnell’s luxury clothing and an engraved Rolex watch that businessman Jonnie Williams, the former head of Star Scientific, bought for Maureen to give to her husband. Last year, Bob McDonnell publicly apologized for the embarrassment the scandal caused the state and said his family had repaid about $120,000 in loans.
