Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard Charged With 23 Counts Of Corruption
Ahead of mid-term elections, one public servant in Alabama has found himself in a precarious position after being charged with 23 felonies in a corruption probe.
According to AL.com, Mike Hubbard, speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives and a powerful leader in the state Republican Party, has been indicted by a grand jury and charged with 23 counts, including using his office for personal gain and soliciting things of value.
The Montgomery Adviser has reported that a special grand jury has been meeting on and off in Hubbard’s home of Lee County for over a year.
The charges against Hubbard include 23 class B felonies. Those charges include four counts of using of his office as Chairman of the Alabama Republican Party for personal gain, one count of voting for legislation with a conflict of interest, eleven counts of soliciting or receiving a thing of value from a lobbyist or principal, two counts of using his office as a member of the Alabama House of Representatives for personal gain, four Counts of lobbying an executive department or agency for a fee, and one count of using state equipment / materials for private gain.
According to the indictment, Hubbard solicited favors from some of Alabama’s rich and powerful. They include former Alabama Governor Bob Riley, Business Council of Alabama CEO Billy Canary, Hoar Construction CEO Rob Burton, Great Southern Wood CEO Jimmy Rane, former Sterne Agee CEO James Holbrook, lobbyist Minda Riley Campbell, Harbert Management Corp. vice president Will Brooke, and political operative Dax Swatek.
Most gave Hubbard what he wanted, according to the indictment, including major investments into Hubbard’s company, Craftmaster Printing.
Hubbard has said for months the charges were politically motivated, a sentiment he expressed again in a statement Monday.
“If there was any doubt by any body that this is a political witch hunt, it became crystal clear today when these allegations were brought two weeks before an election. The fact is that we have made big changes in cleaning up the way things are done in Montgomery. The fact is we have been very successful at getting big things done in Lee County including 3,000 new jobs over he past four years. I’m sleeping well at night because I know the people of Lee County can see this for what it is and that’s politics at its worst.”
If convicted, Hubbard faces a maximum penalty of two to 20 years in prison and up to $30,000 in fines for each count.
[Image via Al.com]
