The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, 2/27/8
Several crucial decisions lie ahead for the Scruggs-Backstrom judicial bribery case in federal court. Senior Judge Neal Biggers Jr. is expected to rule on them today.
– Will information be allowed from government wiretaps and searches?
– Will evidence be presented allegedly showing another attempt to bribe another judge?
– Will separate trials be ordered for either of two defendants?
Set to go on trial March 31 in Oxford are famed plaintiffs’ attorney Richard “Dickie” Scruggs, his law-partner son Zach and their legal associate Sidney Backstrom. They maintain their innocence against a six-count indictment they tried to bribe Circuit Judge Henry Lackey of Calhoun City.
If the government cannot use what it’s garnered from extensive wiretaps, the defense team’s job may get a lot easier.
Magnolia Tribune
