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Excerpt - NASHVILLE — Former Tennessee state Sen. John Ford has been sentenced to 14 years in prison on federal charges of wire fraud and failing to report more than $800,000 in payments from state contractors. ~ snip ~

NASHVILLE -- State Sen. Ophelia Ford -- already a YouTube star for her snarling "what you're saying ain't hittin' on nothin' with me" speech last year -- was back at it last week, berating regulators about new state fees on the funeral industry. Acknowledging that she's a licensed funeral director, Ford complained in a legislative hearing Aug. 13 that fees are going to "eat us up and put us out of business." She demanded regulators disclose who imposed a new $150 biannual registration fee on preneed funeral sales agents and what it's for. Turns out that Ford and her legislative...

NASHVILLE -- A federal court jury convicted former state senator John Ford of all six charges in connection with his $850,000 in consulting work for two major TennCare contractors. Ford, 66, is already serving a 5 1/2 year sentence for a separate conviction on federal bribery charges in Memphis. He faces up to 20 years in the Nashville case but sentencing will not occur for several weeks, possibly months. The middle Tennessee jury deliberated a total of eight hours -- six on Thursday -- before returning to the courtroom where it sat since the trial began on July 1. The...

Tenn. won't reinstate Ophelia Ford's expired funeral permit

NASHVILLE -- Then-state senator John Ford filed state-required financial interest disclosure forms yearly for 2001 through 2004 without listing any consulting work or income -- and then sought to amend them in 2005 after media reports began surfacing about his consulting income and a formal ethics complaint had been lodged against him, according to testimony today in his federal court trial here. Earlier testimony has indicated that the consulting firm in which Ford was a 40 percent partner received about $1.2 million from a TennCare dental services provider during that time. But under questioning by prosecutors, Senate Chief Clerk Russell...

The U.S. Attorney’s Office this afternoon announced that it is dismissing bribery and extortion charges against former Memphis city councilman Edmund Ford Sr. and Joseph Lee, former head of Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division. “The Government has re-evaluated the case and stated to the Court that a dismissal is warranted in the interest of justice,” the one-paragraph statement said.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- This month's trial of former state Sen. John Ford on corruption charges could last up to a month. Ford is accused of taking $800,000 in consultant payments from TennCare contractors to promote those private companies' interests with the state's expanded Medicaid program. Ford was known for his flashy attire when he was a lawmaker. On Monday he was led into court in a dark green jumpsuit with his hands cuffed behind his back. He was convicted earlier this year of taking $55,000 in bribes during the unrelated federal Tennessee Waltz investigation and is serving a 5 1/2...

News Channel 3 has confirmed the Internal Revenue Service is after former Senator and current prisoner, John Ford. The IRS says Ford owes more than 220,000 in unpaid federal income taxes. The IRS would not comment on specifics but did say the taxes are from 2003, 2004 and 2005. Ford is currently in a federal prison on bribery charges prosecuted under Operation Tennessee Waltz. Ford is serving 5 years in prison. A June 24 trial is set for Ford in Nashville on allegations he took $800,000 in illegal payments.

A psychologist raised in Frayser and trained in South America, Morgan had been rejected twice by the state's psychology licensing board because of his academic record. But Morgan found a powerful ally in then-state Sen. John Ford, who pushed through legislation that forced regulators to hand Morgan a license to practice, according to an examination by The Commercial Appeal. That carefully tailored 1998 law has privately troubled psychology professionals for years yet remained unknown to the larger public. The newspaper uncovered the matter following Morgan's indictment last month. Federal prosecutors contend Morgan offered Ford money in 2005 for legislation that...

A federal court jury this afternoon acquitted former Memphis City Council member Edmund Ford Jr. on charges of taking bribes in 2006 in return for his vote and influence on a development and billboard project. The jury of seven women and five men returned its verdict at about 4 p.m. after deliberating the better portion of two days. As a smiling Ford walked out of the federal court room, he said in a loud voice, “My Lord, the Savior is awesome. He is awesome. I just love my Lord.” Ford, 52, a mortician, was indicted on three counts of extortion...

A federal court jury is scheduled to begin deliberations this afternoon in the extortion and bribery trial of former Memphis City Council member Edmund Ford Sr. Federal prosecutors say the 52-year-old mortician accepted $8,900 in bribes from a political consultant in 2006 for his votes and influence in a development project, removal of a city billboard moratorium and the replacement of the chairman of the Board of Adjustment. “Each of these payments was made for official acts,” federal prosecutor Tom Colthurst told jurors as he showed secretly recorded videos of consultant Joe Cooper giving cash to Ford. “You also see...

Wearing a button-sized hidden camera in his shirt and a recorder taped to his waist, political consultant Joe Cooper passed $100 bills to then-city councilman Edmund Ford Sr. in 2006 while seeking approval for a development project. On the tapes presented Wednesday to a federal court jury, Cooper refers to Ford as "the Godfather" and "the master" and encourages him to "work your magic and just make sure it happens." Testifying as the government's key witness in Ford's extortion and bribery trial, Cooper explained how he regularly got such issues approved by the council for well-heeled developers who employed him....

The FBI called it Operation Main Street Sweeper, a relatively short undercover investigation that yielded several indictments, three guilty pleas to date and one memorable quote. After allegedly accepting a $1,900 bribe in 2006 to line up votes to repeal a billboard moratorium, then-City Councilman Edmund Ford Sr. pocketed the money and confidently declared on a secretly recorded videotape: "I'll drum up seven or make somebody walk out." The strength of the government's case against Ford will be tested this week in a trial before U.S. Dist. Court Judge Samuel Mays Jr. Jury selection from a pool of 105 citizens...

GUEST COLUMN: In addition to universal health care, our next president should create an American Center for Cures -- a cabinet-level authority charged with fighting life-threatening disease. By the time our next president takes the office, 50 million Americans will be living and working without health insurance. By the time he or she seeks re-election, health care costs in the United States will reach $3 trillion -- with medical costs rising twice as fast as workers' wages. For those reasons, health care is at the center of the presidential debate this year. We believe America needs a universal health care...

Former state senator John Ford was assigned to maintenance duty today at the federal prison in Louisiana where he is serving a 5-year prison sentence for bribery. “He will be temporarily assigned to assist the dorm orderlies with sanitation in the dorms,” said Karen Million, spokesman for the Federal Prison Camp at Pollock, La. “After we have a chance to assess his skills, we may assign him to a different job assignment.” Ford, 65, who reported to the camp Monday afternoon, was convicted last year of taking $55,000 in bribes from undercover FBI agents in the Tennessee Waltz investigation into...

5 1/2-year sentence is result of bribes taken in Tennessee Waltz sting - MEMPHIS - The Rolex watches, fancy suits and plush hotels are all things of the past for former state Sen. John Ford.Ford, 65, reported Monday to a federal prison camp in Louisiana to begin a 5 1/2-year sentence for taking $55,000 in bribes during the FBI's statewide corruption sting called Tennessee Waltz.Once one of the state's most powerful lawmakers, Ford was known as a flashy dresser with a taste for fine dining and expensive hotels.At the prison camp, he will have half of a double bunk in...

Former state senator John Ford entered the federal prison camp at Pollock, La., at 1:40 p.m. today. Ford, who was convicted last year of accepting $55,000 in bribes as a state legislator, is serving a 5-year at the prison, which is about 400 miles from Memphis. Prison spokesman Karen Million said Ford, prisoner No. 20286-076, will receive an orientation and a medical screening today and will be given a work assignment on Tuesday. Ford was convicted as part of an FBI undercover sting dubbed Operation Tennessee Waltz. He is the 10th defendant to be sent to prison. Two others received...

MEMPHIS, TN - Former State Senator John Ford is scheduled to report to federal prison in Pollock, Louisiana on Monday, April 28, 2008. Ford was convicted in April 2007 on bribery charges; he took more than $55,000 to influence votes in the Tennessee legislature. Ford was indicted during an FBI undercover operation, "Operation Tennessee Waltz," which worked to expose public corruption. The United States Penitentiary in Pollock is a high-security facility in central Louisiana, which houses male offender. A satellite prison camp located next to the main facility houses minimum security offenders. The prison is surrounded by the Kisatchie National...

Its political ranks have thinned, but is there a new crop ahead? In videotaped evidence played at his Tennessee Waltz corruption trial, former state senator John Ford once bragged that he was "the man who makes the deals." For many years, he was also the public face of the Ford family to many Mid-Southerners, a larger-than-life character who had the political skills to back up his overbearing personality. With John Ford scheduled to report to prison Monday, he'll be leaving behind a family facing uncertain political prospects. Harold Ford Sr. and Harold Ford Jr., who represented Tennessee's Ninth Congressional District...

Ford family members elevated the dialogue in Steve Cohen's re-election run, discouraging use of the race card - The ability to lead and the willingness to serve are necessary attributes for a member of Congress. When a congressman continues to lead and serve after leaving office, it's a bonus for constituents. Harold Ford Sr. and Harold Ford Jr., who represented Memphis' 9th Congressional District from 1975 to 2007, gave the 9th District a bonus Saturday when they made it clear that U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen's race and religion should not be factors in his re-election bid. Cohen, who is white,...

Reject racially tinged remarks about Cohen by other Fords - Harold Ford Sr. and Harold Ford Jr. on Saturday rejected racially charged remarks made last week by family members Jake and Isaac Ford. Jake Ford, who is trying to unseat Democratic U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen in the Ninth Congressional District, filed Thursday to run again for the seat as an independent. In 2006, he ran and lost to Cohen. In remarks published Friday in The Commercial Appeal, Jake Ford blasted Cohen, who is white, and said Tennessee deserves to have at least one black congressman. Democrats Ford Sr. and Ford...

His racially charged rhetoric is tiresome, particularly during a week dedicated to MLK's memory - Maybe it would have been asking too much to expect Jake and Isaac Ford to hold their peace, at least for a couple of days. Jake Ford, who filed qualifying paperwork Thursday to run for the Ninth Congressional District seat as an independent, wasted no time in taking his campaign on a detour down the low road. Jake Ford suggested that incumbent U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen is unable to represent the district because Cohen is white and the majority of the district's residents are black....

U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen has said he thinks the 9th Congressional District has gotten beyond race in electing its representatives. But independent candidate Jake Ford seemed intent on proving him wrong Thursday. He kicked off the congressional campaign by blasting Cohen, who is white, and saying Tennessee deserves to have at least one black congressman. Still hot from his loss to Cohen in 2006, Ford, younger brother of former congressman Harold Ford Jr., also railed against the news media -- specifically The Commercial Appeal -- for not giving him, or his record, a fair shake in the last election. "This...

Cohen intervenes to request change of prison from Texas to Louisiana -- WASHINGTON -- Former state senator John Ford is going to the big house next month, but after the intervention of U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, it will be much closer to Memphis. Cohen confirmed Thursday that his office made a request to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to look into changing Ford's incarceration from a minimum-security federal-prison camp at La Tuna, Texas, to a similar facility in central Louisiana. Ford, 65, is to surrender to federal authorities next month to begin serving a 5 1/2-year sentence after his conviction...

NASHVILLE -- State Sen. Ophelia Ford answered the Senate's roll call Monday night for the first time since the General Assembly convened Jan. 8. The Memphis Democrat told her colleagues in a brief address upon her return to the Senate floor that she had suffered from a "bleeding ulcer" that took a long time to diagnose, but she's ready to return to work. She had been hospitalized with a previously undisclosed illness off and on since the legislature adjourned last June. Walking slowly with the aid of an aluminum cane, she arrived at her legislative office about an hour before...

NASHVILLE -- State Sen. Ophelia Ford is expected to return to the legislature next week after being absent with an unspecified illness since the session started in January. Ford's temporary assistant, Sherwine Lucien, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the Memphis Democrat had contacted her about booking a flight to Nashville on Monday. "As far as we know, she should be here Monday," Lucien said. Ford has been in and out of the hospital with health issues that have plagued her the past year. The 57-year-old said in March that she had a severe case of anemia that had...

After last week's developments on the campaign trail, it seems highly unlikely that Barack Obama would agree to be Hillary Clinton's vice presidential running mate. But would Harold Ford Jr.? Several days ago, Clinton's campaign floated the idea of selecting Obama as her running mate as a way of keeping Democrats unified in the November election. Obama shot that idea down the day before his win last week in the Mississippi primary. So if Clinton were to win the nomination, where else might she turn to find a running mate who could appeal to Obama's supporters, who include large numbers...

Tamara Mitchell-Ford, who is serving a drunken driving jail sentence in Collierville, was indicted Thursday on two more drunken-driving cases. The 43-year-old ex-wife of former state senator John Ford picked up the cases before she was ordered in November to begin serving 11 months and 27 days for violating her probation on a DUI case from February of last year. In anticipation of the indictments, her attorney, Juni Ganguli, said recently a tentative plea agreement with prosecutors called for Mitchell-Ford to plead guilty to both new DUIs and to be given concurrent sentences of 11 months and 29 days in...

John Ford must report to prison in 60 days, U.S. District Court Judge J. Daniel Breen decided this morning. Ford, 65, has been assigned to a federal lockup near El Paso, Texas. Ford, who was sentenced to 5 years in prison for taking $55,000 in bribes as a legislator, looked grim as Breen announced his decision. “Mr. Ford just said ‘Let’s move forward on the appeal,’ ” said his court-appointed appellate attorney, Robert Brooks. “He’s a very practical man. He understands life and its ups and downs.” On Wednesday, Ford argued he needed to delay his imprisonment because he needed...

John Ford fought federal prosecutors to a standoff this morning and will avoid prison for at least one more day. U.S. Dist. Court Judge J. Daniel Breen ordered Ford’s attorney to find out when Ford’s ex-wife Tamara Mitchell Ford will be released from a DUI sentence she is serving in Collierville. Breen will continue the hearing at 9 Thursday morning. The former state senator was sentenced last August to serve five and one-half years in prison for bribery, but has remained free because he says there will be no one else to care for his four children if both parents...

State doesn't penalize lobbyists who skip ethics training

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — State Sen. Ophelia Ford’s attorney has told the Senate speaker that she apparently won't be able to attend legislative sessions “for at least a few more weeks" and won’t attend Tuesday’s opening of the 2008 session. Citing “privacy concerns,” Memphis lawyer David Cocke’s letter did not disclose the nature of Ford’s illness. But her Memphis colleague, Senate Democratic Leader Jim Kyle, said today that she needs to allow her physician to explain her prolonged absence.

John Ford will be home for Christmas. The former state senator, who was scheduled to report to a federal prison Dec. 12, was granted a delay until at least Feb. 27 by U.S. Dist. Court Judge J. Daniel Breen in serving his 66-month prison sentence for bribery. Ford's attorney argued that reporting to prison near El Paso, Texas, would create a hardship in preparing for a March 4 bribery trial in Nashville. He also said Ford is the custodial parent and sole provider for his four minor children - ages 2 to 15 - while his ex-wife, Tamara Mitchell-Ford, is...

John Ford will ask a federal judge today to delay serving his 66-month prison sentence for bribery until either after his Nashville trial is completed next year or until his ex-wife is released from jail where she is serving a drunken-driving sentence. The former state senator is scheduled to report Dec. 12 to a federal prison facility near El Paso, Texas, but he said that would create a hardship in preparing for his March 4 bribery trial in Nashville. Ford, in papers filed in federal court, also said he is the custodial parent and sole provider for his four minor...

The bond for Tamara Mitchell-Ford was increased to $50,000 from $100 this morning by a judge citing her local criminal record, which includes a drunken driving conviction and two pending DUIs. General Sessions Criminal Court Judge Louis Montesi said he may review the bond further if prosecutors present documentation of DUI convictions in three other states, including Mississippi, Alabama and South Carolina. Mitchell-Ford, the ex-wife of former state senator John Ford, was arrested and jailed Wednesday after police said she caused a three-car traffic accident at Poplar and Yates. Police said there was an open bottle of vodka in her...

Tamara Mitchell-Ford is in trouble with the law again. The ex-wife of former state senator John Ford was involved in an accident near Poplar and Yates this morning, police said. Mitchell-Ford is facing charges of DUI, reckless driving, public Intoxication, driving on a revoked license and refusal to submit to a breathalyzer test, Higgins said. She also had an outstanding warrant from Shelby County Courts for contempt. At around 10:50, Mitchell-Ford was driving a 1996 Toyota Corolla when it rear-ended a 1999 GMC, which in turn rear-ended a 2005 GMC Yukon, Memphis police spokesman Sgt. Vince Higgins said. Complaining of...

NASHVILLE — A federal judge today agreed to postpone the latest trial of former state Sen. John Ford until March to give his defense more time to pore over thousands of documents. Ford is accused of taking $800,000 in consultant payments from private contractors with TennCare while using his position as a state senator to promote those contractors’ interests. The Memphis Democrat’s attorney, Isaiah Gant, said he did not have enough time to review thousands of pages of legislative history in time for the trial that had been scheduled to begin early next month. U.S. District Todd J. Campbell agreed...

NASHVILLE – A federal judge today rejected this newspaper’s motion to unseal records related to an FBI wiretap placed on then-state senator John Ford’s phone in 2005. In rejecting the request by The Commercial Appeal, U.S. District Judge Todd Campbell said he must balance a range of conflicting interests, including Ford’s right to a fair trial. The Memphis Democrat is set to stand trial here Nov. 6 on six public corruption charges. “There’s a whole witches’ brew of things that have to be balanced,’’ Campbell said. The judge said he also weighed the public’s right to open courts and privacy...

Judge rules government wiretaps in Waltz sting can be used in Nashville trial -- Former state senator John Ford lost a round Tuesday in Nashville where he's fighting federal corruption charges. A judge rejected Ford's motion to suppress wiretap evidence, giving a green light to prosecutors to use secret recordings of the Memphis Democrat's phone calls at his trial next month. U.S. District Judge Todd Campbell dismissed arguments by Ford's lawyer that the government improperly used a wiretap in its Memphis-based Tennessee Waltz sting to build a separate criminal case against Ford in Nashville. In the Waltz sting, Ford, 65,...

Foreclosure sale on East Memphis house now owned by his ex-wife -- Few things stir as much passion or evoke more sentimentality over the American Dream as a home. So when this two-story brick home goes on the auction block this morning, it will not only shatter one homeowner's personal dream but also deliver a wrecking ball to a Memphis political icon -- former state senator John Ford. Ford's former East Memphis home, now held exclusively by his ex-wife, is in foreclosure and is set to be sold to the highest bidder at 11 a.m. on the steps of the...

John Ford will not have to report to prison on Oct. 17 as scheduled. The former state senator was granted additional time this morning for his appellate attorney to obtain and review several thousand pages of transcripts from his bribery trial. Ford, 65, who was convicted in April of taking $55,00 in bribes as a state legislator, was sentenced last month to 5 ½ years to be served in a federal prison near El Paso, Texas. U.S. Dist. Court Judge J. Daniel Breen, however, continued the report date and set a hearing for Nov. 28 to determine whether he Ford...

NASHVILLE — Days after news broke in 2005 that then-state Sen. John Ford was taking huge payments from a state contractor, his brother warned him he could be facing criminal charges, according to wiretap evidence released today in federal court here. Former congressman Harold Ford Sr. told John Ford as federal agents listened in on a Feb. 14, 2005, phone call that once a grand jury begins looking at the payments from a TennCare contractor, “it’s all over.’’ “I mean that TennCare thing got to be the most explosive thing in the world,’’ Harold Ford told his brother. “... I...

Former state senator John Ford, who was convicted of bribery last month, has been ordered to report Oct. 17 to the federal prison in Anthony, Texas. The order of surrender was issued this week, a month after U.S. Dist. Judge J. Daniel Breen had sentenced Ford to 66 months. With good behavior, he could get out in about four and a half years. Yet Ford, 65, a savvy Memphis Democrat who dominated the city’s legislative delegation for three decades, has one more card to play. Ford faces an Oct. 1 hearing, when he will ask to remain free while he...

While some Memphis City Council races are thinly populated with two or three candidates, voters in District 6 will choose from among 11. There's a new Ford Jr. in the arena this year, but not a Harold. This is Edmund Ford's son who is vying for his father's seat on the council. Four other candidates have run for political office, several in past races for this seat. Eight of the candidates responded to a questionnaire submitted by The Commercial Appeal. District 6 includes Southwest Memphis and parts of Whitehaven, South Memphis and Downtown. Residents are worried about abandoned houses, high...

Tamara Mitchell-Ford was arrested in Collierville Tuesday night for driving under the influence and driving with a revoked license. It's the second time this year Mitchell-Ford, the ex-wife of former state senator John Ford, has been arrested in the suburb for drinking and driving. A Collierville police officer pulled Mitchell-Ford over on a routine traffic stop between 8 and 9 p.m. Tuesday on Poplar near Houston Levee, said Lt. Mike Moore. The police report wasn't completed late Tuesday so details were sketchy. Moore didn't know if a field sobriety test was conducted. A child riding with her was picked up...

NASHVILLE — While some national Democratic figures are getting rid of contributions collected from Norman Hsu, the Tennessee Democratic party and Harold Ford Jr. have no such plans. Hsu, who a major donor and fundraiser Democratic causes, was jailed last week in California on fraud charges dating back almost 15 years. The Tennessee Democratic party received $58,000 from Hsu last year — $38,000 to the party’s fund for state campaigns and $20,000 to the party’s fund for federal campaigns. Ford received $14,700 in three contributions during 2005 and 2006. Other Democrats, including presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have...

A day after he was sentenced to 51/2 years in prison, former state senator John Ford and his newly appointed attorney were already working on an appeal. Ford asked a judge Wednesday to order taxpayers to finance copies of trial transcripts needed for his expected appeal -- a request that could cost $8,000 or more. The filing seeks a speedy production of the transcripts and signals that Ford will ask for a seldom-granted bond that would keep him out of prison until the appeal is resolved. "Every case is different,'' said Ford's new attorney, Robert C. Brooks, sizing up his...

Ford family has long flexed political clout in Memphis

Judge not convinced Ford truly believes he did anything wrong - John Ford was sentenced to 66 months in prison this morning for his April conviction of accepting $55,000 in bribes in the FBI's Tennessee Waltz public corruption investigation. U.S. Dist. Court Judge J. Daniel Breen carefully noted his interpretation of advisory federal guidelines that suggest enhanced punishment for factors such as the amount and number of bribes, threatening witnesses, acceptance of responsibility and the fact that Ford was an elected official. The judge said he was not convinced that Ford truly believes he did anything wrong and that the...

Character witnesses testifying on John Ford's behalf asked a federal judge this afternoon to show leniency in sentencing the former state senator. Ford, 65, who was convicted in April of taking $55,000 in bribes, faces up to 10 years in prison. His defense says the amount should be no more than a year or two. "He's a fun guy and hard working," said retired state representative Alvin King. "You could depend on John. He was the go-to person. He was an outstanding legislator. He got a lot of things passed." Turning to U.S. Dist. Court Judge J. Daniel Breen, King...