A very brief biography of Donald Eugene Siegelman

[Elwood P Dowd]

Donald Eugene Siegelman (born February 24, 1946) is an American Democratic politician. He was the governor of Alabama from 1999 to 2003. Don Siegelman is the only person in the history of Alabama to be elected to serve in all four of the top statewide elected offices: Secretary of State, Attorney General, Lieutenant Governor and Governor. He served in Alabama politics for 26 years, winning his first election for the governorship with 57% of the vote, including over 90% of the African-American electorate.

He was defeated for reelection in November 2002 by Representative Bob Riley by the narrowest margin in Alabama history: approximately 3,000 votes. The margin was controversial, as a voting machine malfunction in a single county produced the votes needed to give Riley the election. The recount, however, of that county's votes was affirmed by the state's Attorney General.

In 2006, a Federal jury convicted Siegelman on corruption charges, and he was sentenced to seven years in prison. He has served in the satellite camp of The Federal Detention Center in Oakdale, Louisiana. On March 28, 2008, he was released on bond by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals pending his appeal.

Personal life and early career

Don Siegelman was born and grew up in Mobile, Alabama. He graduated from the University of Alabama in 1968, and from Georgetown University Law Center and studied international law at the University of Oxford. While at the University of Alabama, Siegelman served as the President of the Student Government Association and member of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. While in law school at Georgetown, Siegelman met his expenses by working as an officer in the United States Capitol Police. Prior to becoming Governor in 1999, he had served as Lieutenant Governor from 1995 to 1999, state Attorney General from 1987 to 1991, and Secretary of State from 1979 to 1987.

Siegelman is married to Lori Allen, and they have two children, Dana and Joseph. Siegelman is Catholic<2>, and his wife Lori is Jewish; they raised their children Jewish. Joseph had a bar mitzvah, and Dana had a bat mitzvah at Montgomery's Conservative congregation, Agudath Israel Etz Ahayem.

Siegelman has studied martial arts for decades and holds a black belt in Kyokushin-style karate.

[EFerrari]

1. Kick

[Elwood P Dowd]

2. They WILL try to silence him

one way or THE OTHER!

[EFerrari]

3. A lot of us are worried about his personal safety. I agree.

:kick:

[Elwood P Dowd]

5. Did you know he was followed and pulled over by the cops on the way home?

His lawyer was talking about it on a call-in show Friday afternoon.

[EFerrari]

6. But wasn't he released today? n/t

[Elwood P Dowd]

7. He was released Friday.

On the way home the cops pulled him over.

[trof]

12. Speeding.

Understandably in a hurry to get home.
Happily, he wasn't driving.
Not sure the cops even knew who he was.
But you never know.

[midnight]

4. An amazing family. Sounds like another stolen election.

This story just continues to add more and more questions to the list.

[L. Coyote]

8. K & R. And thanks for all your good posts on this topic.

[Elwood P Dowd]

9. Thank you LC.

If you have the time (I don't) check into the Turnham/Rogers election of 2002 along with the two-year college investigation that is nothing more than cover to to trash democrats.

[hisownpetard]

10. Thanks for the informative post. i think that a lot of people have been so taken up with the

primaries that they haven't had time to devout enough attention to this case, so the more information
that's put out there, the better.

This is an absolute travesty. Let's hope that Don stays safe and the true story gets told.

[EFerrari]

11. Kick