Private lawyers bill Va. $90,000 more to represent McDonnell, staff in chef-theft case

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Private lawyers bill Va. $90,000 more to represent McDonnell, staff in chef-theft case
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/private-lawyers-bill-state-90000-more-to-represent-mcdonnell-office-in-chef-case/2013/09/04/ffea10d0-15c1-11e3-be6e-dc6ae8a5b3a8_story.html

By Laura Vozzella, Published: September 4

RICHMOND — A private law firm has billed taxpayers $90,000 for six weeks of work representing Gov. Robert F. McDonnell and his staff in the embezzlement case against the former chef at the executive mansion.

The fees come on top of the $54,000 that Richmond’s Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott charged earlier this summer for its first five weeks on the case.
....

About $72,000 of the bill was for legal work performed for employees of the governor’s office, and about $18,000 was for services for McDonnell.

Those legal services are separate from the criminal defense work that another private legal team is providing to McDonnell, who has been engulfed in a gifts scandal that came to light because of the embezzlement case. A legal defense fund has been set up to pay those bills.

As Johnny Rotten said so many years ago,

[JimboBillyBubbaBob]

1. Hmm,

As a Virginia taxpayer I refuse to have my contributions participate in this thievery. What a crock!!!

[mahatmakanejeeves]

2. Not pay taxes? Go directly to jail

Do not pass go, do not collect $200

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. Gov. Robert McDonnell shouldn’t stick Va. taxpayers with his legal bills in gifts case

Gov. Robert McDonnell shouldn’t stick Va. taxpayers with his legal bills in gifts case
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/gov-robert-mcdonnell-shouldnt-stick-va-taxpayers-with-his-legal-bills-in-gifts-case/2013/09/11/a3fde588-1b0e-11e3-82ef-a059e54c49d0_story.html

By Robert McCartney,

It wasn’t enough for Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell to embarrass the state, weaken the Republican Party and cripple his political career by accepting largesse from businessman Jonnie Williams Sr.

Now, he and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli have managed to stick state taxpayers with part of the legal bills for trying to fix the problem.

The state is picking up the tab for tens of thousands of dollars in private lawyers’ fees for helping the governor and his staff deal with the controversy over suspicious gifts and payments from Williams to McDonnell and his family.

The public shouldn’t let them get away with it. We should demand that the governor’s private defense fund pay for all the legal work related to McDonnell’s involvement in the gifts case.