Stevens Calls Verdict ‘Unjust,’ Vows Fight

By Matt Kelley

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ted Stevens was found guilty Monday on seven counts of concealing more than $250,000 in gifts from wealthy friends — becoming the fifth U.S. senator ever to be convicted of a crime.

The verdict comes about a week before Alaska’s voters will decide whether to re-elect the Republican senator to an eighth term and at a time when his party is fighting to stem its losses in a tough year.

The 84-year-old senator — the longest-serving Republican in Senate history — criticized prosecutors for “prosecutorial misconduct” and vowed to continue his campaign. “I will fight this unjust verdict with every ounce of energy I have,” Stevens said in a statement. “I am innocent.”

Patti Higgins, head of the Democratic Party in Alaska, called on Stevens to immediately resign.

“I think it’s all over,” said Ivan Moore, an independent pollster in Alaska whose poll last week showed Stevens and his Democratic challenger, Mark Begich, virtually tied.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the GOP vice presidential nominee, did not call on Stevens to resign but said in a statement: “I’m confident Sen. Stevens will do what’s right for the people of Alaska.”

The jury found Stevens guilty of all seven counts of lying on his Senate financial-disclosure forms by omitting more than $250,000 in gifts, most of them from Bill Allen, the former head of an Alaska oilfield services company, Veco.

Stevens was visibly shaken as the verdicts were read, and his defense attorney, Brendan Sullivan, patted him on the back. As he left the courtroom, the senator got a kiss on the cheek from his wife, Catherine, who testified on his behalf during the trial. “It’s not over yet,” he told her.

Each count carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, but judges have leeway in sentencing. Stevens remains free until sentencing, which has not been scheduled.

The trial included several missteps by prosecutors who mishandled witnesses and evidence, drawing repeated rebukes from U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan.

Those will likely be the basis of Stevens’ appeal, says former federal prosecutor Todd Harrison. “He doesn’t have many strong issues for appeal,” he added. “All of those issues … were hashed out during the course of the trial, and Judge Sullivan was really tough on the prosecution.” (c) Copyright 2008 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.