February 29, 2008 Former State Sen. John Ford Must Report to Prison; Former State Sen. Kathryn Bowers Sentenced

Former State Sen. John Ford must report to federal prison within 60 days to begin serving a 5-1/2 year sentence in connection with his conviction for taking bribes in the Tennessee Waltz scandal that rocked Capitol Hill in Nashville in 2005.

Ford also still faces a June 2008 trial in Nashville for concealing large amounts of money received from TennCare contractors.

In another Tennessee Waltz case, former State Sen. Kathryn Bowers was sentenced a few weeks ago to 16 months in prison and 2 years of supervised probation for taking $11,500 in bribes in the FBI's E-cycle sting operation.

December 6, 2007 This 'n That: Cooper/Ford/Neeley

Tennessee State Senator Jerry Cooper will not seek re-election. Cooper was recently fined $120,000 by the Tennessee Registry for Election Finance for multiple of violations of campaign finance laws.

Cooper's violations included diverting $95,000 of campaign contributions to his personal bank accounts.

The fine was just the last in a series of problems for Cooper including a fraud trial, in which he was found not guilty but where testimony revealed his conversion of campaign money to personal money, and a wreck due to DUI.
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Former State Senator John Ford will not have to report to prison in December to start serving his 5 -1/2 year sentence for bribery in the Tennessee Waltz scandal.

Instead, Ford will remain free so he can care for his four children by ex-wife Tamara Ford-Mitchell. Tamara is serving a DUI sentence and has another DUI pending.

So John, who has already been convicted of bribery and who has another bribery trial set for March 2008, gets to tend to the children.

Ford's court-appointed attorney pointed out that in addition to caring for the children, Ford will be free to help prepare for his next bribery trial and for the appeal of his current conviction.

Tamara's timing is lousy. She really needs to ask a Judge to let her out to be the parent and let John go to prison. Or how about a jail-sharing arrangement? She serves six months and then John serves six months. Whoever is not in jail takes care of the children! [Remove tongue from cheek]

The online comments at the end of the Ford article are as interesting as the article.

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A few weeks ago, Channel 5 in Nashville reported another ticket-fixing for a prominent politico. This time the recipient of a dismissed speeding ticket was Tennessee Labor Commissioner James Neeley.

The Judge who was to hear the case said he dismissed the speeding ticket because the Trooper didn't show up at court.

But reporter Phil Williams pointed out to the Judge that he had dismissed the case a week BEFORE the court date at which the Trooper was to appear!

Neeley won't say who took care of the ticket for him, but after Channel 5 started looking at his dismissal, Neeley decided to go ahead and pay the fine for the already-dismissed ticket.

Of course, one can't discuss ticket-fixing in Tennessee without at least mentioning the saga of Dep. Governor Dave Cooley.

August 28, 2007 (Senator) Ford Gets 5-1/2 Years

Judge Daniel Breen sentenced flamboyant, arrogant, and bribe-taking former Tennessee State Senator John Ford to 5-1/2 years in prison.

Ford--like several other Tennessee legislators and local politicians--was caught red-handed on tape taking bribes in the FBI Tennessee Waltz sting operation.

Ford initially denied the charges but is now very sorry and takes "full responsibility" for his acts.

August 27, 2007 (Former) Sen. John Ford: "I Talk Too Much"

At his Tennessee Waltz sentencing hearing today, the once-proud and always boastful former Tennessee State Senator John Ford wiped a tear away as he said of himself, "I talk too much."

At trial, FBI audio and videotapes showed Ford talking too much and peddling his influence to the highest bidder. The tapes told the story, and Ford was convicted of bribery.

At today's sentencing hearing, Ford's attorney paraded numerous character witnesses to the stand to tell what a wonderful person Ford really is.

And, of course, the judge is being told how much "good" Ford did in the legislature. Sure, he did lots of good---for the highest briber. Oops, I mean bidder.

Now Ford--who knew all along that the charges were true and that he had taken bribes--has seen the light and is begging for mercy.

Despite knowing all along that the charges were true, he was never sorry or begging for mercy before the trial started.

Despite knowing all along that the charges were true, he was never sorry or begging for mercy before the audio and videotapes started to play.

Ford's pleas for mercy and acceptance of responsibility might seem almost genuine if they hadn't come only AFTER he was convicted.