PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The fate of Philadelphia City Councilmember Bobby Henon and labor leader John Dougherty is now in the hands of a federal jury.
Jurors got the case Wednesday afternoon after a lengthy charge from the judge in the conspiracy and bribery case.
Judge Jeffrey Schmehl's instructions lasted just over two hours as he explained in detail the legal definitions needed to evaluate each of the 18 charges that the jury must decide, though not all of them apply to both defendants.
One point of contention throughout the closing arguments was the definition of bribery. The defense had repeatedly challenged the notion that a salary could be a bribe.
Schmehl said a bribe could be a stream of benefits — not just a one-time payment, tied directly to a particular act — but he also specified it had to be "something of value to which the recipient was not already entitled."
The defense had noted Henon had been receiving a union salary for years.
Schmehl also differentiated between the charges against both Henon and Dougherty, as well as the charges against only Henon, which involve campaign contributions from the Communication Workers of America union.
Political fundraising, he explained to the jury, is a legitimate activity of people seeking office, so accepting contributions does not constitute bribery unless the giver makes an explicit demand for a specific action.
The jury heard hours of tape and testimony from dozens of witnesses over the five-week trial, so deliberations are likely to take some time.
