Judge Combines Mayor's Corruption Cases
Updated 11:30 AM EDT, Wed, Nov 4, 2009
There will be one corruption trial for Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez, despite the mayor’s attempt to keep the corruption charges against him separate.
The prosecutor wanted to consolidate the two cases into one, but Perez's lawyers argued that would deny the mayor of his right to a fair trial because two complex cases would be combined into one extraordinarily complex case.
On Wednesday, the judge decided in favor of the prosecutor.
In January, Perez was charged with taking a bribe from a city contractor, who renovated the mayor's Bloomfield Avenue home.
In September, he was accused of trying to extort $250,000 from a real estate developer who wanted to develop adjoining properties at 1161 and 1143 Main Street in Hartford, according to the warrants.
The charges in that case involve former Hartford State Rep. Abraham Giles, 83 and City Councilwoman Veronica Airey-Wilson. Airey-Wilson was charged with fabricating evidence for allegedly false records showing she paid a city contractor for a home improvement. Carlos Lopez, a Farmington resident, is charged with fraudulently voting in Hartford elections. Both pleaded not guilty.
Giles, according to the state Division of Criminal Justice, paid the city $500 a month to use the property at 1143 Main St. as a parking lot. The warrants allege that Giles initially demanded $250,000 from the prospective developer for the project to go forward, but later reduced that amount to $100,000.
Perez has denied all the charges.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC Connecticut
First Published: Nov 4, 2009 10:04 AM EDT
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