NYT/AP: Writer Says Ex-Chief of HealthSouth Paid for Positive Coverage

[DeepModem Mom]

Writer Says Ex-Chief of HealthSouth Paid for Positive Coverage
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: January 19, 2006


BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) -- A writer who turned out a stream of sympathetic newspaper stories about former HealthSouth Corp. CEO Richard Scrushy during his fraud trial says Scrushy secretly paid her $11,000 through a public relations firm and typically read her articles before publication.

Documents obtained by The Associated Press show that the PR firm wrote thousands of dollars in checks to Audry Lewis, whose freelance articles appeared in The Birmingham Times, a small but influential black newspaper.

The documents also show that money from the PR firm went to a pastor who says he was paid to help bring fellow black preachers into the courtroom in a bid to sway the mostly black jury in Scrushy's favor.

Scrushy, acquitted in June of involvement in a $2.7 billion accounting fraud scheme at the chain of health clinics, strongly denied authorizing payments to Lewis or the pastor, Herman Henderson, for any work on his behalf. The executive said he did give money to Henderson's church for a building fund and Hurricane Katrina relief.

The lead prosecutor in Scrushy's case said there was nothing criminal in what Lewis and Henderson described, and members of the jury have said the only thing that influenced them was a lack of evidence against the defendant. But the payments raise questions about the legitimacy of the ostensibly grass-roots support for Scrushy seen throughout his trial....


http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Scrushy-Payments.html

[joeybee12]

1. Every day I wonder--Can it get any worse?

And, every day, the answer is yes.

[Straight Shooter]

2. So it isn't criminal to mislead people on a jury?

Wow. As my granny would say, "If that don't beat all."

[Freddie Stubbs]

13. The jury isn't supposed to be reading about the case in the newspaper

I'm sure that no juror would disobey the judge's instructions. If they had, it would have been grounds for a mistrial.

[BadGimp]

3. the bar has been raised

thx Screwshy

[quaoar]

4. Scrushy Said to Pay for Positive Stories

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=1523079

Woman Says Ex-HealthSouth CEO Paid Her $11,000 to Write Sympathetic Stories During Fraud Trial

By JAY REEVES Associated Press Writer
The Associated Press

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. Jan 19, 2006 — A writer who turned out a stream of sympathetic newspaper stories about former HealthSouth Corp. CEO Richard Scrushy during his fraud trial says Scrushy secretly paid her $11,000 through a public relations firm and typically read her articles before publication.

Documents obtained by The Associated Press show that the PR firm wrote thousands of dollars in checks to Audry Lewis, whose freelance articles appeared in The Birmingham Times, a small but influential black newspaper.

The documents also show that money from the PR firm went to a pastor who says he was paid to help bring fellow black preachers into the courtroom in a bid to sway the mostly black jury in Scrushy's favor.

Scrushy, acquitted in June of involvement in a $2.7 billion accounting fraud scheme at the chain of health clinics, strongly denied authorizing payments to Lewis or the pastor, Herman Henderson, for any work on his behalf. The executive said he did give money to Henderson's church for a building fund and Hurricane Katrina relief.

[NanceGreggs]

5. Ever get the feeling ...

... that you're the ONLY American citizen who ISN'T on the GOP payroll?

Just wonderin' ...

[Canuckistanian]

6. Where can I sign up?

I want some of that hush money, too! My kid needs new clothes and the car just blew the transmission.

Write an article? No problem.

Oh, and just make it out to 'Cash'.

[Burried News]

7. It's all just one big Chicago isn't it.

[Orangepeel]

8. is this a crime?

I hope so, because Scrushy is scum.

[cdsilv]

9. Scrushy 'bought' his not guilty verdict by giving $$ to ....

the local black churches in the Birmingham area. I work with folks in Birmingham and they are
really angry that he got off as easily as he did. However, I did notice that he's going to have to pay alot of $$ due to a civil lawsuit.

[Freddie Stubbs]

14. I thought that juries decided criminal cases, not churches

[quaoar]

11. The article quotes a prosecutor

saying it's not a crime. Although paying preachers to sit in the audience to try to influence the jury seems like it borders on jury tampering.

[creeksneakers2]

10. Here's a great editorial on the trial and whole story

And why the media didn't report the story

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/01/AR2005070101819.html

[Bozvotros]

12. I worked for Health South briefly

Scrushy populated his upper management with refugees from various fraud tainted health care companies, including the nefarious crooks from National Medical Enterprises. A nifty history can be found here: http://www.uow.edu.au/arts/sts/bmartin/dissent/documents/health/healthsouth_flowch.html#1984

Scrushy was all about defrauding Medicare and Medicaid. He directed hospital CFOs on time tested ways to drive up reimbursement costs, cut services and dominate the market. A Health South physical therapist might be billing fifteen people 250 bucks an hour by seeing them all at once with a physical therapy assistant, both rushing around the gym and providing minimal supervision on various simple exercises. Scrushy was a conman and egomaniac and was universally despised and feared. He deserved a lifetime of punishment in a prison run like one of his hospitals.