Highlights from Wednesday’s testimony in the Edwards trial

Thursday, March 16, 2000 | 9:19 a.m.

Here are highlights from Wednesday's testimony:

Former Gov. Edwin Edwards' conversation with former congressman Cleo Fields touched on politics, as well as contracts, in a March 24, 1997, meeting in Edwards' office.

Edwards told Fields that he had tried to protect the interests of state Democratic Party Chairman Ben Jeffers because U.S. Sens. John Breaux and Mary Landrieu were "trying to kick him out and put some white dude in there."

Edwards said he told former state Rep. Sherman Copelin that if that happened, Edwards would "never f--k with y'all anymore."

"You didn't hear about the move I made?" Fields asked. "You didn't hear about it? About running against John Breaux?"

"No, what did you do? That'll get his f--king attention because if you run against him and a Republican runs, he don't make the runoff," Edwards said.

Fields then told Edwards about his plan to form the Louisiana Independent Democratic Party, with Jeffers as the chairman.

"In every race, we're gonna put a black candidate ... in every race, they'll be a black Democrat in every single race in Louisiana," Fields said.

According to FBI agent Geoffrey Santini, the investigation of Edwards is not over yet.

Santini was testifying about the work involved in the investigation which he said "continues to this day."

Santini did not elaborate about the ongoing investigation.

Santini also discussed the evidence the FBI gathered for the trial and the number of people who testified at that grand jury.

"It wouldn't be hundreds, but it certainly was many people," Santini said.

Prosecutor Jim Letten said Gaming Control Board Chairman Hillary Crain will testify in this portion of the trial. Letten is hoping that through Crain's testimony, he can introduce statements that gaming board member Ralph Perlman made to Crain.

Letten said Crain will testify that Perlman told Crain in August 1996 that Edwards had invited Perlman to lunch and had mentioned he was interested in the awarding of the 15th riverboat license

Crain will also say that Perlman told him in February 1997 that he had been in contact with Edwards, Letten said.

Immediately after his grand jury testimony, Perlman also told Crain that he had been in contact with Edwards prior to the vote and that Edwards had asked for his support on Eddie DeBartolo Jr.'s riverboat casino application.

Perlman has not attended a gambling board meeting since 1998 at Gov. Mike Foster's request because of the Edwards investigation.

Perlman is on the prosecution's list of potential unindicted co-conspirators in the case.

Prosecutors played another videotape in the trial, but this was made as Edwards' was holding a news conference in May 1997 to discuss the more than $400,000 the FBI took from his home and safety deposit box a month earlier.

"All of the cash referred to is cash gambling winnings, cash sales of cattle and timber, personal property and earned income," Edwards said at the news conference.

Santini noted that Edwards changed his story seven months later when he said the money was paid to him by DeBartolo for lobbying and consulting fees.