A former Alaska lawmaker asked a federal judge on Tuesday to throw out his corruption conviction because the same prosecutors in former Sen. Ted Stevens‘ case withheld evidence from his lawyer, The Associated Press reports.
Peter Kott, who was convicted in 2007 of taking bribes to ram through legislation favorable to the oil industry, said after a court hearing that the prosecutors “obviously didn’t play fair.”
Kott, who served seven terms in Juneau, was found guilty of conspiracy, bribery and extortion. He was sentenced to six years in prison but was released in June, after prosecutors acknowledged they failed to turn over material favorable to his defense.
Kott and former state Rep. Victor Korhring, who was also found guilty of accepting bribes, are free pending the completion of a Justice Department review of their cases.
Prosecutors admitted evidence was improperly withheld but said no harm came of it.
“This was a case that had overwhelming evidence,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney James Trusty, according to The AP.
Kott’s lawyer, Sheryl Gordon McCloud, said the court should overturn the convictions, arguing that prosecutors acted in bad faith.
Kott was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph Bottini and James Goeke, as well as Former Public Integrity Section lawyers Nicholas Marsh and Edward Sullivan.
A court-appointed counsel and the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility are investigating the prosecutors’ handling of evidence in the Stevens case, which was dismissed at Attorney General Erich Holder’s request.
Judge John Sedwick is reviewing the Kott case. He could let the convictions stand, dismiss them and order a new trial, or dismiss them with prejudice. Sedwick did not say when he would rule.
