Testimony in Edwards trial expected to resume Monday

Natalie Gott

Sunday, April 9, 2000 | 1:25 a.m.

BATON ROUGE, La. - Former Gov. Edwin Edwards' federal racketeering trial will resume Monday, although no plans had been made by Sunday afternoon to accommodate a defendant who is recovering from quintuple heart bypass surgery.

Prosecutor Todd Greenberg said Sunday that attorneys will meet before jurors arrive Monday to work out any details relating to defendant Bobby Johnson. U.S. District Judge Frank Polozola had planned to discuss the issue with attorneys over the weekend but apparently changed his mind, Greenberg said.

Jurors, who were dismissed from the courtroom last Tuesday morning, will return to court at 9:30 a.m. Monday - an hour later than usual.

Johnson's attorney, Pat Fanning, wants a mistrial declared for her client. Prosecutors oppose the move, claiming Johnson voluntarily agreed to be tried while he is out of the courtroom because he postponed having the surgery until prosecutors were midway through the trial.

Johnson, Edwards', Edwards' son, Stephen, state Sen. Greg Tarver and three others are charged in a series of schemes to manipulate the way the state awards riverboat casino licenses. Their trial, which started Jan. 10, enters its fourth month Monday.

Johnson had heart surgery March 28 and is recovering at home. Polozola said he would accommodate Johnson any way possible to prevent his case from being separated from the trial.

Options included setting up a teleconferencing system in Johnson's home so Johnson could participate in the trial without coming to the courthouse, or hiring a nurse to sit in the courtroom full time with Johnson.

Johnson's wife, Kim, said Sunday that she had not been contacted to try to work out any of those details.

Last week's delay came just as defense attorneys started to present their case. Tarver's attorney, Mary Olive Pierson, questioned one witness - gaming board member Robert Fleming - before the trial was postponed.

She said last that week that she plans to call at least five more. They include gaming board member James Boyer; Tom Warner and Stella LeBlanc, employees of the Louisiana Attorney Generals office; state Senate employee Glenn Koepp; and Tarver's secretary, Janice Gatlin.