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Monday: Easley hearing update
posted at 2009-10-26 14:53 | Last modified 2009-10-26 14:53
The State Elections Board is on a brief lunch break right now, but they sure started things off with a bang this morning.
The first witness in the hearings was McQueen Campbell - a former NCSU board member, pilot, real estate developer, and friend and supporter of the former gov. Campbell testified under oath that the free flights he'd given Easley between '99 and '06 amounted to over $100K.
About 88K of that was for campaign travel, he figures, though he says it's hard to tell in some cases. Campbell told an incredulous board it just never occurred to him to bill Easley for the flights.
But it gets better. As it turns out, Campbell had in fact submitted two invoices to the campaign totalling about $11K for "flights" that didn't match up with his flight records. According to Campbell, those bills weren't really for flights at all - they were seeking reimbursement for Easley's home repairs.
Yes, you read that right. Campbell says while Easley was in the Executive Mansion, he was renting out his Raleigh home, and it needed some serious repairs. So Easley asked Campbell to take care of it. Campbell lined up the contractors and got the work done. When he called Easley to talk about reimbursement, Campbell says the governor asked him if "there were any unbilled flights." Campbell took that to mean Easley wanted him to bill the campaign. Campbell did, and was paid in full.
Easley's lawyer Thomas Hicks took issue with Campbell's interpretation, insisting Easley never told Campbell to bill the campaign. Campbell, a longtime friend of Easley's, replied, "I knew what he meant."
But wait, there's more. Easley then submitted the claim on his homeowner's insurance. The company agreed to pay it. Campbell says his reimbursement came from the campaign, not Easley. So if the insurance company sent Easley a check that didn't find its way back to the campaign (or even if it did), the former governor could be in very big trouble indeed. I can't wait to hear what Elections Board investigator Kim Strach has to say about it when she testifies later in the hearings.
Easley has been subpoenaed, too, along with about 30 other people. It's not clear yet whether he'll take the stand or the Fifth.
For more frequent updates, I'm live-tweeting today - follow me at twitter.com/LauraLeslie.
Comments? Drop me a line.
