John Edwards trial

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Feds Drop Case Against John Edwards

He won't be tried again

(Newser) - Another big win for John Edwards today: Federal prosecutors have filed an order dismissing the remaining criminal charges against him. The move comes after a jury in North Carolina acquitted the former presidential candidate last month on one count of accepting illegal campaign contributions. It deadlocked on five other felony...

I Can't Stop Thinking About Cate Edwards
 I Can't Stop Thinking 
 About Cate Edwards 
Frank Bruni

I Can't Stop Thinking About Cate Edwards

Frank Bruni still speculating about the dutiful daughter's motives

(Newser) - At this point, we've heard so much more than we ever wanted to about John Edwards and Rielle Hunter and Andrew Young. But Frank Bruni of the New York Times is still fixated on a bit player in the saga. "What was Cate Edwards thinking?" he writes. Cate...

Alternate Juror: I Wasn't Flirting With Edwards

Denise Speight calls accusations hilarious

(Newser) - An alternate juror in the John Edwards case wasn't flirting with the former candidate, she says, despite accusations to the contrary . The ABC News report citing "giggling" and "blushing" was "just the most funny thing I'd ever heard," Denise Speight said today on Good ...

Edwards Trial Outcome Unsatisfying, Embarrassing
Edwards Trial Outcome Unsatisfying, Embarrassing
reactions

Edwards Trial Outcome Unsatisfying, Embarrassing

Pundits not cheering the result, on the whole

(Newser) - John Edwards was acquitted on one charge in his campaign finance fraud trial and the judge declared a mistrial on the rest . So will the Justice Department retry him? A "knowledgeable law enforcement official" tells the AP it's unlikely, though the AP notes the government will thoroughly review...

Edwards Chokes Up, Calls Quinn 'Precious'

Also thanks daughter Cate for attending trial daily

(Newser) - The final day of the John Edwards trial was a confusing one, but the aftermath was surprisingly crystal clear: Edwards made some pretty revealing statements following the news that he had been acquitted on one charge of campaign finance fraud; a mistrial was declared on five other counts. Highlights from...

John Edwards' Defense Calls for Mistrial
 Edwards Not Guilty on 1 Count 
UPDATED

Edwards Not Guilty on 1 Count

Judge declares mistrial on other 5 counts

(Newser) - John Edwards was found not guilty on one of six campaign fraud charges today, and the jury could not reach a verdict on the other counts, leading the judge to declare a mistrial on them. Edwards was accused of masterminding a plan to use money from two wealthy donors to...

John Edwards' Alternate Jurors Told to Stay Home
John Edwards' Alternate Jurors Told to Stay Home
8 days, no verdict

John Edwards' Alternate Jurors Told to Stay Home

Day eight of deliberations wraps up with no end in sight

(Newser) - Jurors in the John Edwards' trial wrapped up their eighth day of deliberations today without a verdict. About the newsiest development is that the judge told the four alternate jurors, the ones who like to wear shirts of matching colors, that they no longer have to report to the courtroom,...

Alternate Juror Flirting With John Edwards?

... and he's apparently flirting right back

(Newser) - The jury in the John Edwards trial is deliberating for the sixth day, but most of the buzz today is centered on one of four alternate jurors. It's almost too hard to believe:
  • ABC News : "... it has been impossible to ignore the dynamic between Edwards and one of
...

John Edwards Defense Team Quickly Rests Its Case
John Edwards Defense Team Quickly Rests Its Case
PLUS, REACTION

John Edwards Defense Team Quickly Rests Its Case

Neither he nor Reille Hunter will testify

(Newser) - The John Edwards trial will wrap up relatively short on drama: His defense team rested its case today after a little more than two days, opting not to call Edwards himself, daughter Cate, or former mistress Rielle Hunter to the stand, reports CNN . Closing arguments are tomorrow, and jury deliberations...

Edwards Case Hinges on Lone Word: 'The'

Defense: prosecution's argument could allow abortions on campaign's dime

(Newser) - Bill Clinton wondered about the meaning of "is" when talking to the grand jury vis-a-vis Monica Lewinsky in 1998; now John Edwards' defense team is building its case around the word "the," reports ABC News . The statute at the heart of the case refers to campaign cash...

Edwards Aimed for Supreme Court Seat

He also pushed to be Obama's VP or attorney general

(Newser) - The prosecution rested its case today in the John Edwards trial, with testimony providing a glimpse at just how sky-high his political ambitions were just a few years ago, notes Politico :
  • Vice president: As soon as he lost the Iowa caucuses in 2008, he reached out to Barack Obama's
...

Aide: Edwards' Wife Believed Lies About Paternity

Prosecution to rest without calling Rielle Hunter

(Newser) - Until he finally came clean, John Edwards' dying wife desperately continued to believe his claims that he hadn't fathered a child with mistress Rielle Hunter, a former aide said at his trial yesterday. Jennifer Palmieri testified that she told her close friend Elizabeth Edwards that she believed John was...

Edwards Donor: I Warned Obama Camp About Affair

Tim Toben didn't want Edwards to get an important post

(Newser) - After rumors of an affair had already started to swirl and John Edwards’ presidential campaign unraveled, Edwards revealed to onetime donor Tim Toben that he still had his eye on a prestigious position in Barack Obama’s administration, should he be elected. Toben was shocked—so he warned the Obama...

Edwards' Betrayed Wife Tore Off Shirt, Collapsed: Aide

Ex-aide testifies about confrontation over Rielle Hunter affair

(Newser) - After learning that John Edwards had lied about breaking off his affair with Rielle Hunter, wife Elizabeth had a meltdown at an airport in North Carolina, a former aide testified at his trial yesterday. Edwards, who was dying of breast cancer, "stormed off and collapsed into a ball in...

Edwards Sex Tape Testimony to Be Allowed

But tape itself won't be played, judge decides

(Newser) - The sex tape John Edwards recorded with mistress Rielle Hunter while he was running for president will not be played at his trial, but the judge has cleared the way for jurors to hear about it. Both sides have agreed that testimony about the tape can be introduced, and Edwards'...

Young's Wife: Edwards Knew About Cash

Cheri Young testifies during trial

(Newser) - John Edwards knew about the hush money being funneled to his pregnant mistress, and even lied about it to the wife of aide Andrew Young, who later claimed he was the child's father, testified Cheri Young today. "I heard Mr. John Edwards tell me on the phone that...

Aide: Edwards Called Hunter 'Crazy Slut'

Andrew Young testifies in campaign finance trial

(Newser) - Andrew Young, who also once pretended to be the father of Rielle Hunter's baby to cover for former boss John Edwards, took the stand at Edwards' campaign finance trial yesterday—and he was a mess. He got flustered, gave conflicting (and at least once, wrong) answers, and constantly asked...

Former Aide Grabs Spotlight in Edwards Trial

Former aide improperly spoke to other witnesses

(Newser) - A former campaign aide took center stage in the first day of John Edwards' campaign finance trial today, Reuters reports. During opening statements in Greensboro, North Carolina, Edwards' attorneys said the nearly $1 million Edwards is accused of accepting in illegal funds actually went toward a $1.5 million house...

John Edwards Trial Begins: What to Watch

Plus, how many Americans like him? Not many: poll

(Newser) - It's not a great day for John Edwards: As his trial begins, a CBS News poll finds that just 3% have a favorable view of the former politician, and the New York Post reports that even his romance with Rielle Hunter—who will likely be called to testify—has...

John Edwards Seeks Trail Delay Due to Mystery Illness
 Edwards Seeks Trial Delay 

Edwards Seeks Trial Delay

Lawyers say former candidate has undisclosed medical condition

(Newser) - John Edwards is suffering from an undisclosed medical condition and will be too sick to stand trial next month, his lawyers say. The former presidential candidate's attorneys filed a motion seeking to have the trial, which was due to begin Jan. 30, pushed back another 60 days, ABC reports....

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