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Former Gov. Don Siegelman and HealthSouth founder Richard Scrushy were taken into custody tonight after being sentenced in federal court, and a prosecutor said they would be held overnight in a "local facility." Leslie Scrushy cried on the shoulder of a friend as her husband and Siegelman were escorted out of the courtroom by U.S. Marshals, and former first lady Lori Siegelman left the courthouse visibly shaken. U.S. District Court Judge Mark Fuller sentenced Siegelman to seven years and four months in prison, three years of probation, restitution of $181,325, a $50,000 fine, and 500 hours of community service for...

By BOB JOHNSON, Associated Press Writer 1 minute ago MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy got nearly seven years Thursday in a bribery and corruption case that the judge said damaged public trust in state government.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy got nearly seven years Thursday in a bribery and corruption case that the judge said damaged public trust in state government. Supporters of both men testified at their sentencing hearing, listing their good deeds as attorneys pleaded with U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller to show mercy. "While it is true the good far exceeds the bad, I must impose a fair punishment to reassure all that come before this court that justice is blind," Fuller said...

Siegelman gets seven-plus years Posted by rsims June 28, 2007 7:20 PM A federal judge has sentenced former Gov. Don Siegelman to seven years and four months in prison, three years of probation, restitution of $181,325, a $50,000 fine, and 500 hours of community service for bribery, conspiracy and mail fraud.

Scrushy attorney invokes MLK Jr. Gray tells jury that the late civil rights leader would want a verdict of not guilty Friday, June 16, 2006 By EDDIE CURRAN Staff Reporter MONTGOMERY -- Jurors now deliberating the fate of former Gov. Don Siegelman, ex-HealthSouth Corp. Chairman Richard Scrushy and two others can "make Dr. (Martin Luther) King's dream come true by returning a verdict of not guilty" against Scrushy, famed civil rights lawyer Fred Gray said here Thursday. Gray's rousing closing argument opened with a Psalm, then segued into a recitation of some of Gray's best known civil rights cases, including...

Scrushy sues Paul Finebaum, Birmingham newspaper Former HealthSouth boss and wife say they have been defamed Thursday, December 22, 2005 By EDDIE CURRAN Staff Reporter Former HealthSouth Corp. Chairman Richard Scrushy is seeking millions of dollars in damages in a pair of lawsuits that accuse the Birmingham News and Alabama radio personality and sports columnist Paul Finebaum of defaming him. Both lawsuits include claims that Finebaum and the News libeled him with coverage or comments suggesting that Scrushy joined a black church for legal, not spiritual, reasons. In September, Scrushy's wife, Leslie, joined her husband as a plaintiff in the...

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - A federal grand jury on Monday indicted former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman and former HealthSouth Chairman Richard Scrushy on more charges in a political corruption case. The new indictment accuses Scrushy of paying off Siegelman for a seat on the state health regulatory board, and accuses both men of wielding improper influence over the board. Siegelman called the latest grand jury action another attempt to destroy his Democratic campaign for governor. "They are going to try to pull every trick in the book to manipulate the 2006 election," he said Monday. Federal prosecutors have said repeatedly that...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Jurors acquitted HealthSouth Corp. founder and fired chief executive Richard Scrushy on a key conspiracy count Tuesday in a $2.7 billion earnings overstatement at the rehabilitation and medical services chain. The charge, with sweeping implications because it included allegations of fraud, false corporate reporting and making false statements to regulators, was the first in a 36-count indictment against Scrushy, the first CEO charged under the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate reporting law. The court session continued as jurors announced their decision on the Sarbanes-Oxley charge and others against Scrushy, who blamed the massive accounting scheme on subordinates including all...

Just got a note from friends a the U.S. District Court in Birmingham that the Jurors have reported to the Court that they are deadlocked on all 30+ charges against former CEO Richard Scrushy. This is also the first trial under the Sarbanes/Oxley bill.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Former HealthSouth Corp. president and director James P. Bennett has been indicted in a massive fraud at the rehabilitation giant, prosecutors announced Thursday amid the fraud trial of former CEO Richard Scrushy. Bennett, 47, was accused of fraud, conspiracy, insider trading, money laundering and lying to the FBI (news - web sites) in a scheme in which he sold company stock worth about $17.4 million, according to a statement from prosecutors. Testimony in Scrushy's trial has indicated that Bennett knew of the scam, in which 18 people have now been charged. Fifteen have reached plea deals and...

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (Reuters) - A federal judge on Saturday sentenced former HealthSouth Corp. Chief Financial Officer Michael Martin to five years probation for his role in the company's massive accounting scandal, again ignoring the government's recommendations for jail time. Judge U.W. Clemon also fined Martin $50,000 and ordered him to forfeit gains of $2,375,000. The prosecution had asked for five years in prison, protesting what it considered extreme leniency in sentencing. Nine other HealthSouth executives who pleaded guilty in the fraud have been sentenced. Only one -- Emery Harris -- has received jail time, for five months. Martin had pleaded...

<p>There is only a modest fan base for the 300 or so patriotic and religious ditties Sen. Orrin Hatch began penning back in 1996.</p> <p>But the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee has reported more than $50,000 in royalty earnings since then, thanks in part to one very big fan: a contractor for HealthSouth Corp., the embattled hospital company, who says he bought more than a thousand compact discs of the Utah Republican's songs.</p>